The Girl Downstairs
by Buddingwriter1863
Summary: AU. Jonathan Hunter Junior is about to inherit his father's company, Cornerstone, as the package delivery conglomerate prepares to go public. However, after a one-night stand with a mysterious redheaded girl named Tulip, Junior finds himself caught up in scandal that threatens his promotion, but may give him something more important: the woman of his dreams.
1. One Night, One Hotel Room, Do the Math

The Girl Downstairs

Chapter 1

One Night, One Hotel Room; Do the Math

"Junior, come and meet Mr. Balvinni!" The sound of his boss's deep, unyielding voice drew an inner groan from Jonathan Hunter Jr., a young man with short-cut hair that was so blonde, some said it almost looked platinum in the right light. The hair stood out strikingly against his dark brown eyes, the rolling of which he took care to conceal from his approaching boss (and father), Jonathan Hunter Sr.

Mr. Hunter had an older, dark haired gentleman in tow, who Junior took to be 'Mr. Balvinni,' and he offered a handshake with an awkward smile. "Hello sir, how do you do?"

"Very well, young man, thank you." Mr. Balvinni replied in a thick Italian accent, accepting Junior's hand graciously.

"Mr. Balvinni was one of our startup investors. He's quite pleased with how Cornerstore has turned, aren't you signori?" Mr. Hunter remarked.

"Oh yes, very pleased." Balvinni agreed with a nod.

Junior began to tune out his father's business ramblings. To be honest, he simply wasn't that interested, and the discomfort of the pure white business suit he was wearing did not help the fact. It felt as though the light blue tie he was wearing was intent on strangling the life out of him, and a part of Junior wanted to give it a good strong pull to assist it in the endeavor. Death seemed a better alternative to being stuck in a hotel conference room full of men so old that they could probably remember their first Frank Sinatra concert.

"You're father tells me you will be taking over management of the company soon." Balvinni broke in on Junior's thoughts.

"Huh? Oh…yeah…yes, I will effectively take charge in a few weeks." Junior stuttered, earning him a chastising frown from Mr. Hunter.

"Ladies and gentlemen, a moment if you please." Hunter shouted above the sea of chattering voices, "I have arranged to have horderves and drinks provided by the hotel free of charge. Please proceed to the bar downstairs if you would like, and bon appetite."

There were cheers of appreciation, and some of the guests stopped to shake hands with Mr. Hunter and thank him as they passed by. However, the elder Hunters eyes never left his son, who sensed that a lecture was coming. Sure enough, as soon as everyone had cleared the room, Hunter's eyes narrowed.

"Do you want this promotion or not?" he demanded.

"Of course, dad."

"Ah, ah, ah!"

"Sorry, of course _sir._ "

"Then keep your eye on the ball this evening. Everyone here is involved with the company one way or another, and you will need to know each and every one of them inside and out. Everything has to run smoothly, starting from the top down."

As he spoke, Hunter towered over Junior in a show of dominance. It was times like this that Junior cursed the fact that he had inherited more of his mother's figure. He was not of a stocky build like his father, who was also blessed with a height of six foot, two. Instead, the younger Hunter was only five feet, seven, and was as skinny as a student on a hunger strike.

"I understand da…errr…sir."

"Good, then get downstairs and start making acquaintances!"

They left the conference room and headed down the elevator. All the way Junior felt the urge to throw up. He wished that he would. Then at least he could feign illness and not have to put up with more of the glad-handing that was sure to greet them in the bar. With a ding, the doors slid open to reveal a short, stumpy man with dirty blonde hair and a pair of thick glasses. The man, Terence Beckley, squinted at Junior, crinkling his nose as if a most unpleasant odor had just wafted past.

"Mr. Hunter, Mr. Alvirez would like to discuss the renewal of the box manufacturing contract." Beckley said haughtily, shifting his gaze to the boss.

"Very well, come along, Junior. You should be a part of this." The younger Hunter wasn't given much choice as his father placed a hand on his shoulder and half-guided, half-dragged him into the bar.

As the pair departed, Beckley shot Junior a particularly dirty look.

 _Yeah, same to you Toady!_ Thought Junior annoyedly.

Toady was Beckley's nickname at work, not that any of the employees actually called him that to his face. His obvious physical features weren't the only thing that had garnered him the moniker. There had been many a time Junior was tempted to ask how the frumpy little suck-up managed to see with his nose stuck so far up Hunter Sr.'s ass. There was certainly no love lost between them. Toady had made it clear that he was not impressed by Junior, and that the company would be better off under his direction. Still, family was family so Junior got the job and Toady was sidelined. The whole situation seemed to have added a bit more bite to the sycophant's evil glares in recent days.

At the far end of the barroom, several Latino men sat around one of the larger tables. The head of the table stood up with a wide smile as the Hunters approached.

"Aaaah, Jonathan, so good to see you my friend. Come, lets us buy you something to drink." The man, presumably Alvirez, shook Hunter's hand warmly and offered him a seat. "And who is this young man?"

"This is my son, Jonathan Hunter Jr. He'll be taking over management of Cornerstore after the company goes public. I felt he should a part of the negotiations for the new contract, since you'll be dealing with him soon."

"Indeed, well, it is good to meet you, Mr…."

"Junior…you can call me Junior."

"How about _Mr._ Hunter Junior?" Hunter gave his son another patronizing look.

"Very well. What are you drinking gentlemen?" Alvirez inquired as a waitress arrived to take orders.

"Just water for me, thank you." Hunter waived his had dismissively.

"I'll have a Manhattan with extra…ow!" Junior's own order was interrupted by a sharp jab right in his ribs under the table by his father's elbow.

"Junior will have _water_ as well!" He growled.

"Yes…please." Junior grunted as he rubbed his now aching side.

Alvirez let out a booming laugh. "Well, at least your son seems to know how to have a good time, unlike yourself, Hunter."

"My son still has much to learn about this business."

"Si, this is just my point, my friend. You are always about business. Do you ever think about anything else?"

"Cornerstore is my life's work, I've devoted fifteen years of my life to it. Surely you can understand it being my primary focus. It's no different than you and your box company."

"Perhaps...very well, since you are so intent on business, let us do business. I took the liberty of having our lawyers draw up the new contract." As he spoke, Alvirez reached into a brief case and produced a stuck of papers so thick they could have stopped a speeding bullet which he dropped on the table with an audible thump. "You will take note that we have been obliged to raise the rates on bulk shipments."

"What!?" cried Hunter incredulously as he grabbed the contract and began flipping through the pages searching for the offending amendment.

"What can be said, Hunter. The price of manufacturing paper products is going up. We must all accept changes if the wheels of business are to remain turning. Besides, what is a little price increase? You will continue to receive the same quality of material in a timely and efficient fashion. You know we are dependable."

"Cornerstore didn't get where it is today by paying higher prices on boxes. I came to you because you were one of the cheaper producers."

"And I still am. I'm not the only one who has raised his rates."

"I imagine I might find that is not the case if I were to do some digging."

The argument drew out like a blade, each exchange of words becoming sharper and sharper against the grindstone of competing interests. For Junior, the whole things seemed incredibly dull and childish, and the more things went on, the more he retreated within his own mind. The boredom had driven him to drink, and he nodded a thank you to the waitress as she refilled his glass of water for the fifth time in a half-hour. Internally he gave a loud sigh. He would have given anything to be anywhere but here, stuck listening to two old guard businessmen haggle over some cardboard boxes. About an hour later they were still going at it, and Junior was growing sick with the realization that his promotion to manager was going to mean a lot more of these: meetings at big tables with big egos seated around it while words and tempers flared. He would have preferred to stick with delivering packages. Yes, before his current promotion, Jonathan Hunter Jr., son of Cornerstore founder and CEO Jonathan Hunter Sr. had been a deliveryman. Hunter had always believed that one should start from the bottom of the ladder, and his child was no exception. After his mother had died and he had graduated high school Junior found himself driving around a truck delivering people's good door-to-door for several years. Despite the low pay and long hours, Junior had to admit he had enjoyed it. It was simple work, not like all this business stuff that required one to be thinking about a million different things twenty-four-seven. He liked things simple. In fact, he was getting pretty good at it, having just delivered his one millionth package when his father had called him into his office one morning to announce that he would be going on to head the new board of directors of Cornerstore, and would leaving the 'keys to the kingdom' as it were in Junior's hands. Now, here he was, stuck in a hotel bar staring his future right in its ugly mug. He didn't like what he saw.

"Very well, it's a deal then." After an hour and a half of arguing, debating, and haggling, Hunter pulled out a pen. "Junior, why don't you sign."

"Huh?" Junior shook his head, having been pulled back down to reality so suddenly.

Hunter sighed and shoved the pen into his son's hand. "Just sign."

'Just sign' failed to reveal that signing the damn contract included Junior going through almost every page, where he found line after line where he had to "sing here" or "initial here." It was an arduous process, and his hand was aching by the time he was done.

"Well, gentlemen, if that is all, we will take our leave." Hunter stood, and Junior followed suit.

As they walked, Hunter vented. "That sneaky little greaser thinks he can just raise the rates whenever he feels like?! Well, just wait and see. Once Cornerstore is bigger than UPS or FedEx, I'll buy his box company and see him and his family out starving on the street." Clearly, he was quite bitter about the whole thing.

"To be honest, I didn't think it was that big of a deal." Junior interjected. "I mean, yeah, the price went up, but only by five cents per box. That's not that much in the big picture of things."

"Oh, so you _were_ paying attention, were you?" Hunter snapped, silencing his son's feeble protest. "Well, maybe you'll pay attention now when I tell you that men like Alvirez are a dime-a-dozen. They're all gonna be after a piece of you, trying to screw you out of what's yours! You need to turn the tables and screw them right back, that's how business is done!"

There was an uncomfortable silence that followed. Junior wasn't sure what to say. Neither was Hunter apparently, who sighed after a minute and said: "I need to speak to Grayson about those new contracts delivering his products. You should come with me, get to know him."

"Actually, I thought it might be better if I went around and introduced myself to some other people, you know? I mean, that whole thing with Alvirez took so long, and it's getting late, and I really think I should meet as many people as possible before this thing ends."

Junior stared at his father, and he stared back with an expression that was disquietingly unreadable. A part of the boy feared that he was in for another reprimand, but this dissipated when a wide smile broke out across Hunter's face. He let out a booming laugh, causing a sheepish grin to form on Junior's own lips as his father slapped him hard on the back.

"Good thinking Junior, good to see you're finally showing some initiative. We'll make a Hunter out of you yet!"

"Thanks dad."

"Ah!"

"Sorry… _sir._ "

"Now get out there and get to know every nook and cranny of the machine, only then can a man understand how it can be well oiled."

"Uh huh." Junior's mouth muscles were burning as he continued his forced smile while waving at his departing father until he was satisfied that he was far enough away. "Wooooh" after letting out a long, heavy sigh his face fell and he made a beeline for the bar. If he had to spend the rest of the evening meeting sweaty old businessmen, he was getting a good buzz going first.

Despite the large number of people present for the conference (most of whom probably had a healthy thirst under their belts) the bar itself was relatively unoccupied, so he had plenty of stools to choose from. He chose one closest to where the bartender was standing as he whipped up a fresh platter of drinks to go out to the guests. As he sat down, Junior loosened his tie and un-did the top bottom of his dress shirt, and let out a relieved gasp as though he had been submerged in water near to the point of drowning. Damn shirt always choked him.

"What can I get you, pal?" Asked the bartended gruffly, not even looking up from the drinks he was already mixing.

"How about some drain cleaner?" Junior requested only half sarcastically.

The bartender glanced up at him with a new sense of sympathy. "Yeah, if I had any I'd split it with ya." With that he picked up the platter and carried it off, leaving Junior to decide what he really wanted to drink. This was exactly what he was mulling over when a soft giggle from off to his left drew his attention.

"Sorry, I think the last businessman dressed in an uncomfortable looking suit bought the last drop of Drano." Seated two seats down from him was an incredibly beautiful young woman with brilliant red hair that was tied up in a bushy pony tail. She had shiny green eyes that seemed to sparkle against her alabaster skin, beneath which lay a pair of lips colored ruby red with lipstick that outlined a broad smile with some of the whitest teeth he had seen outside of a tooth paste commercial.

"What?" Junior muttered. He had been so distracted by her beauty that he hadn't fully processed her jibe.

This elicited another giggle from the woman. She looked young, certainly younger than Junior anyway.

"You look like you'd rather be in Hell than here. You're not the first." She noted drolly.

"Why does it have to be Hell? You don't know me; maybe I'm a good guy who says his prayers by night."

"And may become a wolf of Wall Street, huh?"

"Maybe I already am."

"Haha!" this time the girl's laugh was obviously at his expense, and it irritated him.

"Do you always pick on people you don't know?" He retorted.

The woman looked surprised by his sudden hostility. A look of genuine regret came over her face. "I didn't mean anything by it, I was just…well…it's just my way of dealing with nervousness." She attempted to explain herself, and Junior had to admit, it was kind of cute.

"Uh huh, that must get you a lot of friends." He said sarcastically.

"Hey, my friends think I'm one of the nicest people on earth actually."

"I'm guessing you didn't meet them in a bar."

"No." She admitted with a smile.

There was a bit of an awkward silence on the heels of the admission, and Junior took the opportunity to look her over. She was wearing a black dress that exposed a modest amount of her shoulders and back, and ran all the way down to a few inches below her knees. This, combined with a pair of matching black high heels, reminded him of something a high schooler might wear to prom.

"Hey, I'm up here."

 _Damn!_ Junior cursed himself as his eyes, which she had evidently noticed wandering, shot back up to hers.

 _Now she's gonna think you're some kind a perv._

Thankfully, the bartender returned at that moment and Junior seized the opportunity for a distraction. "Can I get an IPA please." He requested.

The man grunted and reached under the counter to retrieve a bottle of the ale. "Thanks." Junior muttered, grabbing the bottle and hurriedly getting to his feet. He wanted to get as far away from this stranger as possible after making himself look like such a fool.

"Is it your usual custom to undress women with your eyes and then run?" The girl called after him, causing him to stop short. A part of him wanted to keep going, just cut his losses and run, but another part couldn't bear to leave her with such a poor impression of him. No, he owed her some sort of explanation.

"Look, I…you…let's just…" Junior struggled to find words.

"What do you say we start over, alright?" the girl suggested as she shifted down the two stools so that she was sitting right next to him. She patted his now empty stool with a reassuring smile. "C'mon, I don't even know your name."

Slowly, hesitantly, Junior sat back down, earning a pleased look from his new acquaintance. "I'm Tulip." She said.

"Really?" Junior's eyebrows raised a little, "Were your parents florists?"

"I don't know, I never knew them." She said it matter-of-factly, but he saw the flash of pain behind the veil of her irises, and instantly regretted his comment.

"Oh…well…I guess you can go ahead and stamp 'jackass' on my forehead then." Junior muttered penitently.

"It's alright, you couldn't have known, I mean, we hardly know each other. Speaking of which, what's your name?"

"Jonathan Hunter Junior."

"Wow, that's a mouthful."

"Yeah, most people just call me Junior."

"Junior huh?"

"Well, _Mr._ Junior."

At this Tulip laughed. "Oh, Ok, _Mister_ Junior, just what is it you do then? You some kinda high powered stock broker?"

"No…not exactly."

"What's that mean? Do you work on Wall Street?"

"No, I'm more of a…well, I'm uhhh…" Suddenly 'delivery boy at, about to be manager of, Cornerstore' somehow didn't seem all that impressive. "I mean, I deal with stock occasionally." It wasn't technically a lie.

He suddenly became aware that now, more than ever, he could use the beer before him, and he started to try and pop the cap off.

"Oh, here, let me get that for you." Tulip reached into her purse nearby and pulled out a strange looking device. It reminded him a bit of a mouse trap. The redhead winded a small key on the side, pulling a small metal strip back like a catapult. She then took the bottle and pressed the end of the metal strip underneath the cap before pressing a small button next to the windup key. The metal strip was released and sprang forward, popping the cap off as it went.

"There you go." She offered him the now open beer.

"Wow, what's that?" Junior asked as he took his first sip.

"A bottle opener. I built it myself." Tulip explained, beaming proudly.

"Really, that's awesome."

"Thanks."

Junior took another swig before asking his next question. "So, are you, like, an engineer or something?"

Tulip laughed. "No, I've never even been to college actually." She admitted.

"Really? You seem very bright."

Junior thought he saw a bit of blush creep into Tulips cheeks. "Thank you," she said with a wide smile.

"So what do you do if you're not an engineer?"

Now it was Tulip's turn to choose her words carefully. "I have a little job repairing things, but I mostly build stuff just as a hobby."

"Have you ever thought about selling any of your stuff? I'm sure there's people who'd pay good money for that fancy automatic bottle opener."

"Nah, not when they can get a regular one for a few bucks at a corner store."

"No, I'm serious, _I'd_ pay for it."

"Really?"

"Sure. Have you tried getting on one of those TV shows like Shark Tank or something? You could probably get some funding."

"How about you?"

"Huh?"

"You said you deal with stock, right? Why don't you fund me?"

"Uhhh…I uhhh…ummm…I don't really have a lot of extra cash right now; a lot of my assets are tied up in securities and currency exchanges and…"

Tulip closed her eyes and snored exaggeratedly. "Boring! Is business all you talk about?"

"No!" Junior snapped defensively. He wasn't like his father. "I talk about music. Who's your favorite band?"

"The Lumineers, hands down!"

"Who?"

"Wow, you've never heard of them? They're the greatest! Who's your favorite?"

"I dunno I…I always liked "Beautiful Day" by U2."

"U2? What are you forty?"

"Thirty-two, thank you!"

"Really? You look younger."

The sudden compliment drew a small smile from Junior. "I have a really boyish face. I get it from my mother."

Tulip was laughing again, but this time he laughed with her. It was kind of nice actually. He polished off his bottle of beer that he'd been chipping away at over the course of the conversation before ordering another.

"What are you drinking?" He asked Tulip, who looked a bit surprised by the question.

"Huh? Oh, no, I'm good."

"No, seriously, don't worry I'll buy." Junior offered.

"Ummm, Ok, I guess I'll have what you're having."

"Another IPA my good man."

For the next two hours, they talked. As the minutes wore on, and he drank one beer after another, Junior began feeling the familiar buzz of the ethanol pulsing through his veins, taking away his nervousness. He was now feeling quite comfortable. They talked about music, joked about the downfall of the industry if bands like Nickelback ever had their way, and drank the night away.

"So, you go a boyfriend?" Junior inquired at one point, the alcohol perhaps making him a bit bolder.

Tulip smiled sheepishly, and Junior once against could have sworn he saw a tinge of blush creep into her cheeks. "No." she admitted, "I haven't really had time to look for one, what with work and all."

"You work a lot?"

"Yeah, I live on my own and rent isn't getting any cheaper."

"I hear that!" Junior concurred, clinking his bottle with Tulips.

"How about you?"

"Not as much as I'm going to be with this promotion I just got."

"Yeah? Congratulations."

"Don't congratulate me just yet. It's gonna be a whole lot more stressful than my old job, that's for sure."

"You seem like the kind of guy who can handle it."

"It means I gotta wear a lot more of these business suits."

"Ooooo, on second thought you might wanna go ahead and order that Drano." They both laughed at that. Junior found himself becoming more and more enthralled by her laughter. It was so light and ringing, joyful. It was quite infectious.

"Ahem!" the throat clearing came from behind Junior, and he spun in his stool to find himself face-to-face with the scowling face of Toady.

"Your father wanted me to inform you that he took the liberty of renting a hotel rooms for himself and you this evening, since it is very unlikely that anyone will be driving home." The ass-kisser huffed as he plopped a hotel room key on the counter.

"Alright, thanks." Junior said, not even bothering to hide his own dislike. There was the alcohol to blame for that. Toady glanced at Tulip, who gave him a friendly smile that fell when he gave her his signature look full of venom.

"Good to see you're making so many 'acquaintances,' Mr. Junior." He noted with heavy sarcasm before slinking back to whatever stone he had crawled out from under.

"God I hate that guy." Junior muttered.

"Sure seems like the friendly type." Tulip deadpanned as she watched him go, "Who is he?"

"He works for my father as the resident ass kisser." The jibe earned him a rewarding giggle.

"So, what does your father do? He must be loaded if he can afford a room in this place."

"Yeah he's a…uhhh…he's an entrepreneur."

"How vague."

"Well, he handles a lot of different things." Again, technically not a lie, but Junior feared that if it was revealed that his father ran Cornerstore, it would inevitably lead to the overthrow of his lie that he was some Wall Street broker instead of a deliveryman.

"I see. Well, listen it's getting late…" Tulip stood and nodded at him. "…I should probably be going." Suddenly, a sharp pain dug into Junior's stomach. He didn't want this girl to just walk away. He needed to find out where she worked, or get a phone number, or…

"Where are you staying tonight?"

 _What are you doing!?_ Some semblance of rational thought screamed at him through the haze of alcohol that had pressed him into asking what might be construed as the boldest questions he had asked Tulip all evening. She stopped mid-step and paused for a moment. Junior felt his heart stop. He expected to see a look of anger and disgust on her face when turned to tell him what a dirty old businessman he was, and how he could go drown in a ditch for all she cared. Instead, however, she turned and looked at him with interest.

"Home I guess. Unless, of course, you have an _alternative_ suggestion." Her voice grew heavier and her eyelid's dropped a little as the words left her perfect lips.

 _Wait, is she…_ Junior was stunned silent as he just stared at Tulip.

"Well?"

"I…I have a room." Junior stated the obvious, his wide eyes never leaving Tulip as he held up his room key.

The redhaired Aphrodite (it could well have been the alcohol, but she seemed to be getting more beautiful by the minute) smiled a smile just big enough to show a glint from those pure white teeth. It was a smile of acceptance, but also of anticipation.

"Alright."

It had to be a dream. It sure felt like one as Tulip followed him out of the bar, up the elevator to the fifteenth floor, and down the soft carpeted hall that stank of that stereotypical hotel smell. The whole way Junior kept secretly pinching himself.

 _Holy crap, am I seriously about to have a one night stand with her? I haven't had one of these since college. What if she's just drunk? What if she wakes up the next morning and decides this whole thing was a mistake? No, she's soberer than I am. She only had one beer, and I don't think she even finished it._ His mind was running rampant with speculation as his slid the key card home and opened the door.

Hunter had spared no expense on the room. It was the size of a condominium with a fully equipped kitchen, mini-bar, and seating area with a couch and a couple of chairs. The far wall was dominated by an enormous floor to ceiling window that gave them a perfect view of the city skyline a blaze with twinkling lights of every color imaginable. He might have found the view quite stunning if he wasn't so distracted by the figure of his companion, who was looking around the room with her mouth half open and eyes wide.

"Wow, look at this place! It's bigger than my whole apartment!" she gasped in delight as she flopped down on the couch and sank into it as though it were made of cloud, "I feel like a movie star or something. Hey, we should order champagne!"

Junior couldn't help but smile at the young lady's enthusiasm while picking up the phone to do as she suggested before joining her on the couch. "I take it you aren't used to the finer things in life." He noted.

"If by 'finer things' you mean: 'used to living on canned tuna in a squalid hole in an apartment block that should probably have been condemned years ago,' then yes. Oh, and I'm pretty sure my neighbor cooks meth."

"Jeez, things are that bad in your neighborhood?"

"Well, when you make minimum, you can't really afford much else."

"I guess not."

They sat and chatted until a knock at the door announced the arrival of the bubbly. Junior wasted no time in opening it, and Tulip squealed in delight at the loud 'pop' of the cork and a stream of the golden colored liquor that gushed out onto the floor. He filled two glasses and, attempting to be the gentleman, handed her the first one.

"Thanks." Said Tulip gratefully as she lifted the glass to her lips and took a sip, only for her eyes to go wide.

"ppppppttttttfff" she spat the champagne out, some of it splattering on his suit.

"Hey!"

"Sorry…sorry…" Tulip apologized profusely as she made a disgusted face, "But this stuff tastes as bad as that beer."

"Hate to break it to you, but most alcohol tastes about the same, unless you get something so sugary that it overpowers it."

"My bad. This is only my third time drinking alcohol."

"Really?"

"Yep, my first time was just a few weeks ago, my buddy Chuck let me have a bit during my eighteenth birthday party."

Tulip mentioned the event so nonchalantly, but it was nearly enough to send Junior's own mouthful of champagne flying. "Wait…what?!" he gasped as choked it down.

"It was some crappy lager, I forget what he said it was called. Tasted really bad though, I don't understand how alcoholics get addicted to the stuff."

"No, I mean, you said you just turned _eighteen_ a few weeks ago?"

"Yeah, so?"

"You're only eighteen?" A sickening sensation was filling Junior as he realized the horrible truth. "I bought alcohol for a minor!?"

 _And you were thinking about screwing her too._

"Oh will you calm down, it's not like I'm wasted or anything. It was half a beer and one sip of champagne."

"No, this is wrong, we shouldn't…"

"Hey…" Tulip moved closer and grabbed a hold of his arm, sending sparks from every nerve in the limb to and brain and heart, causing it to beat a little faster. "It's alright, really. I want to be here." She assured him with one of her first-class smiles.

"Yeah, but…huh!?" Junior's attempt at another objection was interrupted by a gasp when she leaned in and placed a kiss daintily on his cheek.

"You're sweet, you know that? Maybe a little high strung, but I can see beneath that." She whispered, placing another kiss on his face, this one a lot closer to his lips. "You know, you've looked really uncomfortable in that suit all evening. Maybe you should…take it off." Tulip's became lower, huskier…hell, just downright sexier as her lips neared his own.

Maybe it was the alcohol, or maybe it was the fact that he hadn't gotten laid in forever (at least, not since college), but Junior couldn't control himself as his head bent forward, pressing his lips against Tulip's. They were so soft. Comparing them to rose petals would have done them a disservice. They were so much more than that. For a solid minute he couldn't move as he relished in her scent, a spicy lavender odor, and the sensation of her lips on his. He suddenly felt rather self-conscious. His own mouth was probably hard and rough, uninviting.

Tulip pulled away suddenly, causing his heart to drop. He'd never been a very good kisser. She didn't look upset or disappointed, though. On the contrary, her eyes were heavy with lust. "Maybe we should take this into the bedroom." She suggested seductively.

He was under her spell now, and could only nod. She stood and grabbed his hand, leading him behind her like a dog on a leash into the massive sleeping space. There was only a single queen-sized bed inside, but there was certainly enough space for two. Tulip pushed down onto the bed before slowly unbuttoning his shirt.

"Sorry about the mess." She said as she ran her fingers along the stain from the champagne.

"It's alright, my dad will get the dry cleaning." Junior assured her.

Tulip grinned. "You must be so glad to have a dad that can buy you anything."

"He can't buy me a girlfriend."

"Sure he could, there's any number of girls that would go after that sort of money."

"Not the right one, though. They'd all just be gold diggers."

"How do you know I'm not?"

"You haven't asked me for anything."

Tulip finished undoing the buttons and looked up at him. Her eyes held a tenderness that took Junior's breath away. He might have almost convinced himself that he had fallen in love with her right there, but he knew better. Love didn't work like that. She slid the shirt down his shoulder, exposing his bare chest which she ran her hands over lovingly, as though it were a rare piece of art. It made him feel rather self-conscious. Sure, he was a skinny guy, but he had almost no muscle tone, not like those big beach body builders that the girls always seemed to drool over.

"Well, now I'm going to ask you for something…" Tulip whispered suddenly. Junior looked at her with a puzzled look. She puckered her lips a little.

"Kiss me."

This time it was Junior's turn to smile broadly before granting the request. Their lips met once more to provide that magical bridge through which passion flowed while she sat down on top of him, straddling his lap. As their tongues danced the Minute Waltz, Junior reached behind her and unzipped her dress.

"Oooh, someone's anxious to move along." Tulip teased with a giggle.

Junior grinned back. "No I just…though you might be more comfortable with it off."

"Mmmm, good point." Tulip gave him a small peck on the nose before hopping off of him to slip out of the offending clothing while also taking a moment to remove her shoes. Soon, all she was clad in was a light tan bra and white pair of panties.

Junior felt a telltale feeling of restriction around his own privy parts at the sight. Tulip gave a sultry look. "Your turn."

Without hesitation, and in fluid motions so quick they would have put a cheetah to shame, Junior pulled off his shoes, undid his buckle and zipper, and yanked his pants along with his underwear right off.

Tulip laughed, taken aback. "Oh wow, no strip tease for me, huh? You're just brining him right out." She took a moment to glance down at his member.

"Not bad." She muttered.

"Ahem, am I the only one who's gonna get naked here?" Junior asked with a fake pout.

Tulip smiled and reached behind her back to undo her bra, letting it fall to the floor and unveiling her breasts. Junior judged them to be about a 'B' cup, possibly bordering on an 'A,' but he didn't mind. He was never a big breast man anyway. She had other qualities that more than made up for it, including her curvy hips and near hourglass figure. Tulip undid the tie holding her hair, allowing it to cascade over her shoulders like a magical waterfall. Her hands started running over her smooth skin, slowly making their way down to the final piece that hid her most sacred part from him. She was teasing him again. He was patient, though, and soon her thumbs hooked into the waistband and slowly began to push it downward.

 _Well look at that, the carpet does match the drapes_.

Soon she had her underwear down to her ankles and kicked it away nonchalantly before lying down beside him.

"You excited?" She whispered, staring into his eyes.

"You know it."

"You're right, I do." He gasped as she reached down and grabbed ahold of him. "Oh, I definitely do."

Their mouths melded, and the battle for domination between their tongues resumed as one of Junior's hands began massaging Tulip's breast, earning him a small moan, the vibrations of which tickled his lips. As things became more heated, Junior gently pushed Tulip onto her back and got on top of her, his eyes never leaving hers. To his surprise, the confidence, almost cockiness, that had been there up until now had disappeared. Instead, she looked very nervous.

"Are you Ok?" Junior inquired, suddenly worried that she had not intended things to go this far.

"No, I'm fine." Tulip reassured him with a small kiss. She could feel his member pressing against her entrance. "Go ahead."

They moaned in unison as they connected. She was no virgin, that was for sure, but then neither was he. Before long, they found a pace they enjoyed, and the room filled with a cacophony of pants, moans, and groans. Any doubts that had remained in Junior's mind fled at the tidal wave of euphoria that filled his brain as he pumped away. He was loving every minute of it, and he could that she was too. It was beautiful in its own way. They clicked so well for a pair that had just met only a few hours ago.

 _She's pretty as a tulip._ Junior thought in pure bliss as they shifted positions, with her on top.

 _She's my Tulip._

* * *

 **Well, here we are again with another pairing. There's a part of me that feels a bit dirty for joining the hordes of internet authors who spend their days perverting innocent kid's movies, but hey, I guess we all have to start somewhere. Those of you who have seen the movie will notice that I've made significant changes, but still thrown in some references for you in my latest literary exercise. If the chapter feels a little long, I apologize, but I am a firm believer that the best lemons have some build up behind them, otherwise they're just porn for readers to wank off to. I was happy with this one, though, since I felt that there was enough interaction between Tulip and Junior for there to be some substance behind their lovemaking. Sorry if I didn't go into as much detail as your used to, but I refuse to go full on erotica with this one. It's meant to be more than that. For those of you who read the whole thing, rather thank skipping to the good part to relieve yourselves, I hope you enjoyed it. Leave a comment if you have any, well comments, or questions. Happy reading and writing everybody!**


	2. But Here's the Catch

Chapter 2

But Here's the Catch

Junior was greeted by a ray of impossibly bright sunshine crashing into his retina upon opening his eyes, and he rolled over with a groan.

 _Ooooh, God, what time is it?_

He glanced up at the clock on the nightstand where "11:37AM" flashed across the screen.

 _Oh crap, I totally slept in! Why did I stay up all night doing…doing…_

Suddenly it all came back to him: the sweat, the moans, the passion. He sat up and glanced next to him. The bed was empty. She was gone. He climbed out of the besmirched sheets and started to gather up his clothes. He noticed that Tulip's were nowhere to be found, further evidence that she was likely long gone. Out in the sitting room the bottle of champagne stood open, its contents now warm beyond acceptable drinking parameters. It seemed like a shame to waste such expensive stuff, though, so he poured himself a small bit while searching the rest of the room for a note, or something that might indicate that what he remembered from last night was not just some alcohol fueled dream.

 _No, it felt way to real to be a dream._

Still, he found nothing, and was beginning to feel a bit hurt. Sure, the whole thing may have been just a one-nighter, but he thought that they had been getting along really well. They could've at least gone and gotten breakfast together. With a disappointed sigh, he finished dressing (though he didn't bother putting his jacket or tie back on) and headed down to the lobby to check out.

"I trust you enjoyed your stay, sir?" Asked the man behind the counter as Junior handed him the room key.

"Yeah…I guess." Junior said halfheartedly.

As he was leaving, however, a voice called out.

"Mr. Junior!" The distinct accent behind it told him who it was immediately.

"Mr. Alvirez…" Junior turned to see the Mexican businessman approaching and forced a smile. "…How was your night?"

"Very well, but probably not as well as yours." Alvirez replied with a wink. Junior felt his stomach drop into his lower intestine.

"I…I don't understand…"

"I saw that pretty little chica that you left the bar with. She seemed most…voluptuous."

By now the panic lights were going off in Junior's brain. If his father found out about the evening he and Tulip and spent together, instead of a promotion Junior would be receiving his soup and bread from an attendee at the soup kitchen.

 _Just play it off cool. He only saw you leave the bar with her. The rest he's just assuming._

"Actually, we parted ways in the lobby, nothing happened." Junior lied, hoping that his poker face held out, despite the voice in his head reminding him he was terrible at poker.

The look that Alvirez was giving him didn't indicate whether he had swallowed the line or not.

"I see. Well, inform your father that we will have the first shipment of boxes under our new agreement sent to him by the end of the week." He said at last.

"I will, thank you senor." Junior gave an internal sigh of relief as he shook Alvirez's hand one last time.

Out on the street, he was preparing to hail a cab when his phone began ringing. A glance at the caller ID indicated it was Toady, and he groaned.

 _Oh no…_

"Hello?"

"Your father wants to know where you are, you were supposed to be here almost four hours ago." Toady's irritated voice drawled.

"Tell him I'll be there soon, I'm just leaving the hotel."

"You can tell him why you're so late when you get here." With that Toady hung up.

"Go to Hell you little…" Junior growled into his now dead speaker. With another sigh, he put his phone away and went back to the business of getting a cab.

He was not looking forward to facing the boss.

* * *

The main Cornerstore production facility was built upon a cliff overlooking the sprawling metropolis that it had originally served for so many years. Eventually, that service area had been expanded to include the whole state of California, and then the whole nation. As the cab pulled up the long drive to the gate, Junior told the driver that he could walk the rest and payed him his money (plus a healthy tip for which he thanked him profusely). After showing his ID badge to the guard, Junior entered the complex and headed for his father's office. It was located at the top of the factory floor, a massive booth constructed of glass giving the captain a full bird's-eye-view of his ship. The younger Hunter approached the wooden door adorned with a golden plaque that bore his father's name and the title: CEO. There was always something intimidating about entering this room. Junior's memories of the office stretched all the way back to his childhood. He had both good and bad, and, truth be told, the bad outweighed the good. Mr. Hunter was a hard man, who believed in discipline and obedience from his workers. He expected no less from his child, who he was not shy about taking a belt to when the need arose. Several of those whoopings had taken place in this very office, and the memories of them were enough to make his stomach clench as he knocked on the aged oak door.

"Enter!" Hunter's deep voice boomed from within, the dark tone telling his son instantly what sort of mood he was in. Junior was glad that no one was around to see his hand shaking as he turned the knob.

Inside, the boss was seated at his desk with a Bluetooth piece in his ear. Upon seeing who his visitor was his face grew even darker (if that were possible from the already foul mood he was in), and he gestured firmly for Junior to take a seat in one of the chairs before him.

"Jack, I'm telling you, rumors are just rumors, you should know better than to believe everything you hear…well of course they're saying that, our stocks are going nowhere but up once we go public; they have to try and curtail us if they want to keep their own viable…Jack…Jack, trust me, it's going to be fine. I'll call you back in fifteen minutes, alright?"

Junior tried to swallow the lump in his throat as his father terminated the call and turned his full attention on him.

"Where have you been?" despite the obvious displeasure in his eyes, Hunter kept his voice relatively calm.

"I'm sorry dad, I…"

"YOU WILL REFER TO ME AS 'SIR'! IS THAT UNDERSTOOD!?" Hunter's temper went off like an atomic bomb as he stood up and towered over his son, roaring out at the top of his lungs.

Junior scrunched down into his chair, wishing he could just fall through and disappear into the earth. "Yes, sir!"

"You are four hours late, I expected you here bright and early, Junior! If I am to rest knowing this company is in capable hands, then I need to know that you will take your duties seriously."

"I always have, sir!"

"Really?! That's why you met so many of your business associates last night?" There was bitter sarcasm behind Hunter's words.

"I met a few…"

"You met Balvinni and Alvirez. I asked around and no one else had spoken to you all evening. Just what were you doing?!"

"I…"

"You were drinking, weren't you? I swear to God, if you're becoming an alcoholic I'll throw you out on the street myself and let you spend the rest of your days begging for booze money on the side of the highway!"

"I'm not, I promise…I...I'll never touch another drop again."

"See that you don't. This is a new world of business you're going into; you have maintain an image; not just your own, but Cornerstore's too!"

"I understand, sir."

"Good…" Hunter seemed to have calmed down considerably as he pressed the button on the intercom box in his desk. "…Beckley, get in here, and bring your dossier on that problem we were discussing earlier."

"I've told Hanson to cover your shift on delivery routes today. I have something more important for you to do." Hunter explained as they waited for Toady to arrive. "There's been a rash of thefts from the mechanical sector. A number of parts and tools have gone missing."

"How many?"

"Beckley will have a more detailed breakdown, but I'm told it all equals up to about ten-thousand dollars in losses."

Junior was stunned. "Ten-thousand?!"

"Yes, most of the components have gone missing from the mechanics' shop's storage area, so I'd start there. I want you to go through every storage room and take a detailed inventory. Then I want you to question every one of the mechanical staff, find out who has keys to the part rooms and the tool boxes."

"Do we have a list of all the mechanics?"

"Ask the head of the mechanical department about it when you get down there, I'm sure they can get you one. If not, go to HR."

"What about security footage? Aren't the storage rooms monitored?"

Hunter shifted uncomfortably in his seat. "Not at the moment, no." He admitted, "With the company going public soon, I felt it prudent to upgrade all the security systems. The camera network is currently non-operational while they replace them with the newer models, which is information I'd like to not leave this office. If word gets around, thefts will probably increase tenfold."

A knock at the door announced the arrival of Toady, who gave Junior a stack of paper as thick as a hero sandwich (the lack of breakfast was starting to get to him).

"Here are the previous inventory reports that were logged in the past several months, as well as a list indicating everything that has gone missing upon cross reference of the new inventory reports." He said as he handed off the hefty tree graveyard, "On top of that, I took the liberty of requesting the criminal records of all the mechanics. The police department assures me they will have them to us by tomorrow. I'll have them sent to your office as soon as they arrive."

"My office?" Junior didn't have an office. The closest thing was the breakroom where the other delivery drivers gathered for coffee and lunch.

"Yes, I have set aside office number eighteen for you in the marketing sector." Hunter revealed, "It's only temporary, of course, but it'll do until you can move in here."

 _Wow, my own office…_ Junior had to admit, the idea was gratifying.

"Thank you, Beckley, I'll be by Human Resources later so we can go over those new employee applications." Hunter dismissed his simpering little boss's pet, who half-bowed to him and gave Junior his customary dirty look before departing.

"Alright Junior, I suggest you get to it. I expect you to have questioned the mechanics and started those new inventories by the time you leave this evening, are we clear?"

"Yes sir!" Junior stood to leave, but as he was about to head out the door, the boss's voice stopped him.

"And Junior…" he paused to looked back up at him, "…if I were you, I'd consider this a test of your managerial abilities. Beckley has already proven his."

There was heavy silence as Junior processed the subtle threat. "Understood." He said at last, then left. Nonetheless, his father's words weighed on his shoulders as he trudged down the long hallway that led to the main elevator.

 _He'd probably rather have Toady running this place than you. Well that's fine! That snotty little suck-up can have the job for all I care._ No sooner had the thought crossed his mind, however, then he instantly felt angry. Why should Beckley have it? Junior was a Hunter, wasn't he? He was just as good, if not better, at running a business than his father, surely. Why couldn't he do it? Why not? As he walked, his stride became wider and his confidence grew. He'd show his father, he'd show them both. He was perfectly capable of running Cornerstore.

 _And I'll prove it first by figuring out who the fellow in the mechanical department with the sticky fingers is._

He entered the main elevator and headed down into the bowels of the beast. Well, that wasn't quite fair, but it always felt to him like Cornerstore was swallowing him whole whenever he went this far in. The mechanical rooms were at the very bottom of the building. They consisted of a body shop where the delivery trucks and other Cornerstore vehicles received repairs if needed, two massive storage rooms filled with every mechanical part the vehicles could possibly need, a couple of miscellaneous workshops equipped with every tool a mechanic could dream of, and, of course, a breakroom with fully functional coffee machine. This was where Junior stopped off first upon reaching the floor but, finding it empty, he followed the sounds of voices toward the body shop.

"If they don't want the batteries running down, they should buy better ones. These crappy things can't hold charge for shit in the heat, and that's why they keep burning out without the trucks even being on. Stupid drivers just park 'em out in the sun and it cooks the charge right out." One of the mechanics, a tall, lanky fellow sporting a pair of glasses named Charlie, was holding a truck battery and ranting to his fellow co-worker, a fat little fellow with balding brown hair named Patrick.

"You really think Hunter's gonna pay anything higher than bottom dollar? The guy's wallet is screwed so tight you'd have to pry it open with a damn crowbar." Patrick joked as he took the battery from Charlie and turned it over in his hands.

As he approached the pair, Junior noticed the third mechanic, a guy by the name of Eddie with long hair that reached down to his shoulders and a well-trimmed beard, walk out from behind a truck parked nearby carrying a battery of his own.

"Is that one dead too?" Charlie demanded.

"No idea." Eddie admitted as he shook the battery as though it were a Christmas present who's contents he was trying to ascertain. "You know, my mom used to say that if I wanted to see if a battery was charged I should just lick it, and if it shocks me, then it's charged."

Patrick and Charlie grinned at each other. "You wanna test it for us, Ed?" Charlie suggested.

"Sure!" Eddie agreed enthusiastically, before sticking out his tongue and moving it toward one of the electrodes.

"Ahem!" Junior cleared his throat loudly, deciding that now was probably a good time to intervene. The three men looked over at him.

"Excuse me, I'm…" Junior began, but was cut off by Charlie.

"Yeah, we know who you are, _Mr._ Junior. What do you want?" he demanded in a disdainful tone.

 _How about a little more respect from you, for starters?_ Junior thought irritably, but couldn't bring himself to give the admonishment out loud.

"I've been sent down to address the recent thefts." He decided to say instead, thinking it might strike some fear into them if one of them was indeed the crook.

"You got a warrant?" Charlie demanded defiantly.

"A warrant? Why would I need a…?"

"Never mind! So, what do you want from us then?"

"For starters, I'd like to see whoever is in charge."

The three men exchanged glances. "Fine, follow me." Charlie gestured for Junior to do so as he spoke.

He led him through the body shop, dodging in and out of tools and parts scattered about like a military man running an obstacle course he had run about a thousand times before. It was more than could be said for Junior, who nearly tripped and fell about four times.

 _No wonder things get stolen so often, look at the state of this place! They don't even lock their tools up properly._

Their trek through the mechanical jungle came to an end at a delivery truck that was parked at the far end of the shop. Junior could see a pair of legs clad in the standard light brown work boots and brown overalls of a Cornerstore mechanic sticking out from underneath the truck.

"Hey, Tulip, one of the guys from upstairs is here to see ya."

 _Wait, what!_ Junior's heart skipped a beat. _No, it couldn't be._

"Hang on just one second, Chuck." An all too familiar voice called from underneath the vehicle.

 _No,no,no,no,no…_

Junior's brain was screaming as she slid out from under the truck to reveal the blazing red hair and green eyes, the curiosity within them turning to recognition and surprise when she got a look at him.

"Oh, hey!" she smiled broadly as she got to her feet. Her face was stained with smudges of grease, as were her clothes, and she wiped her dirty hands on a rag she had stuffed in her back pocket as she approached.

"Y…you…you…" Junior was so dumfounded he couldn't even get more than one word out of him.

By now both Charlie and Tulip were looking at him in confusion.

"You…work for Cornerstore?" The future manager finally managed to ask.

"What, you two know each other?" Charlie inquired, looking utterly confused now.

A fresh wave of fear gripped Junior's chest. If _anyone_ found out what had happened the previous night, word would inevitably get around, and it was a guarantee that Toady would hear about it from somewhere and run straight to Hunter. Tulip must have seen the panic in his eyes, however.

"Chuck, why don't you go help Ed and Pat finish changing out the batteries in those trucks?" She suggested, her eyes never leaving Junior's.

"You sure?"

"Yeah, I got this."

Charlie shrugged before plodding off, leaving the pair alone with the awkwardness in the air so thick you could cut it with a butter knife. All Junior could do was stare, utterly stunned by the realization that he had slept with one of his own co-workers last night.

 _Not just a co-worker, she's gonna be you're employee soon. Oh Jesus…_

When it became apparent that he was far from breaking the ice, Tulip seemed to conclude that she would have to make the first move.

"Listen, about this morning…I didn't want to be late for work, and you looked like you were sleeping pretty sound, so I just showed myself out. I didn't mean to be rude or anything." She said apologetically.

Junior blinked a few times as she looked at him, expecting some sort of answer. "You…you lied to me." It probably wasn't the smartest thing to say at the moment, but it just sort of slipped out, and the consequences were his to live with. They came quickly; Tulip frowned.

"When?"

"Last night you said that you build things for a living."

"No, I said that was a hobby. I said I _fix_ things for a living, which was perfectly true."

"You fix trucks at Cornerstore."

"Well, yeah."

"And you didn't think that was something I needed to know?"

"You know what, I told you as much as I felt comfortable sharing. It's not like you were very forthright last night either, Mr. Wall Street Wolf."

"I never said I was in stocks."

"You said you 'handle stock.'" Tulip chastised him, making air-bunnies with her fingers. "Is that your clever way of saying you're a delivery man?"

"I didn't…wait, how do you know I'm a delivery man?"

Tulip rolled her eyes. "Pleeeease, I knew who you were the second I laid eyes on you. Your dad owns the company and you work in deliveries. Everyone here knows that, Junior."

"So then why didn't you say anything?"

"Because…because I thought that if you knew I was just a mechanic at your dad's company you wouldn't talk to me." Tulip admitted softly, "I mean, we seemed to be getting along so well…"

"Meaning what? That you were just after some tail?" Junior's eyes narrowed accusingly.

"Excuse you? I had no intentions of 'getting tail' when I walked into that bar. I was forced to go to that stupid conference and was bored, just like you."

Junior shook his head with a sigh. "You know what, it doesn't even matter. It was a one night fling, and I see no reason why we should let it disrupt our work relationship, especially since I'm gonna be CEO in a week."

"Wait, really? Oh, that 'promotion' you were talking about?"

"Yeah…"

"Well, congratulations!" Tulip's brilliant smile was back.

"Don't congratulate me yet, I've still got a long way to go. Speaking of which, I came down here to ask some questions about the…." Junior attempted to switch the subject to the reason he had ever entered that damned garage in the first place, but his voice tapered off when a sudden realization hit him.

"That…that thing you used to open my bottle last night…"

"The automatic bottle opener?"

"Yeah, where'd you get the parts to make it?"

"H…here and there, why?" Tulip's face dropped like a rock, and Junior saw a look of nervousness overtake her features.

 _Of course, she loves tinkering, but she's broke. Where better to work then a place where she'll have access to all of the parts and tools she'll ever need?_

"Do you guys have personal lockers?" He asked.

"Yeah, but…"

"I wanna see yours, now."

"What!? You can't…"

"Yes, as a matter of fact, I can. The agreement you sign before joining company staff states that you give us full legal right to search any personal storage provided on company property without notice. Now take me to it, or I'll call security and have them come open it for me." Junior's threat seemed to strike a chord, and Tulip hung her head in defeat.

"Fine…" she muttered, before leading him to a row of lockers in the breakroom. She stopped at the locker on the far-right end of the row and fiddled with the combination lock. It popped open and she removed it, but abstained from opening the door itself. That was just fine with Junior, who was more than happy to do it himself. Inside was revealed to be some basic clothes: a white t-shirt, pair of blue jeans, and some tennis shoes. At the very bottom of the locker, however, was a pile of parts: spring, pipes, and wires. There was also a whole ratchet set.

"So, you're not only a liar, you're a thief too." Junior growled.

"I'm not a liar!" Tulip shot back angrily.

"Yeah? Well that still leaves thief on the table. You've stolen ten-thousand dollars' worth of equipment and tools from the company!"

"I never steal the tools! I only borrow them when I need them, and I always bring them back." Tulip was on the defensive now.

"And the parts? You bring those back too?"

Tulip had no response. Junior gave a satisfied nod.

"I'm going straight to HR to report this. You can think of some more excuses while we're waiting for the police." Junior turned and started for the exit.

"Good idea, think I'll go with you." Tulip called after him, causing him to stop short. He looked back at her with a puzzled look.

"What?"

"I've been meaning to go to HR." She said nonchalantly as she pretended to study her fingernails, "I want to tell them about one of my co-workers; the guy's a real creep. Not only did he buy me alcohol last night, even though I'm underage, but he also took advantage of me during my intoxicated state and made me have sex with him."

Junior was utterly dumbstruck. He just stared at the redheaded siren as she gave him a look of fresh confidence.

"And, get this, he's fourteen years older than me."

"You wouldn't…"

"Why not? I'm a dishonest thief, aren't I?"

"They won't believe you…"

"They don't have to. There're witnesses: the bartender, the guy who delivered the champagne, and I'm sure the doctors could find plenty of evidence of our…ahem…activities last night."

 _Oh no, no, no, no, no…_

"No, no, no…" the mantra he was chanting repeatedly in his head began to leave his mouth as he walked back and stood before her, jabbing his finger into her chest, "No! That's not how it went down! When I found out how old you were I tried to stop it. You were the one who wanted to keep going! _You_ came onto _me_!"

Tulip grinned and raised an eyebrow. "I wonder how many judges have heard that one before?"

His mouth dropped open. He was speechless, utterly speechless. How could he have allowed this to happen? Tulip let out a laugh as she shut and relocked her locker.

"Look, you seem like a smart businessman, just like you dad. Why don't we make a deal?" She suggested, turning back to him and placing a hand daintily on his cheek. "You forget what you saw in my locker, and what happened in the hotel room, stays in the hotel room, alright?"

Junior offered no response. He was in complete shock. Tulip just smiled and leaned over to kiss his nose before moving around him and out the breakroom door.

"Why did you do it?" Junior called after her, unable to formulate any other thought.

"Well…" replied Tulip, turning to look at him one more time, "…don't take this the wrong way, but…you're kinda handsome. Plus, I thought it would make a cool story to tell around the watercooler, you know? 'That time I banged the boss's son.'"

"You're sick!"

"I imagine the jury would probably see it the other way around. Thanks for coming by, Junior. It's always nice to see you." And with that, she was gone, leaving him to stew in regret and utter misery.

 _Oh God, what have I done?_

* * *

 ** _Poor Junior, I actually felt kind of sorry for him while I was writing, lol. Here's a little Easter egg that you lot may not catch. The office number that Junior was assigned wasn't just randomly selected. I chose eighteen because Andy Samberg, the guy who voices Junior in the movie, was born on August 18, 1978. Hope you enjoyed the second chapter, even if there wasn't any sexy time in this one. Any comments or question? Please leave them in a review. A big shout out to wally's girlfriend for the review. I appreciate the feedback, and I'm glad you're enjoying the story. Happy reading and writing everyone!_**


	3. Stressed to Impress

Chapter 3

Stressed to Impress

 _The room was dark, with the exception of the faint lights from the city that filtered in through the blinds of the window. The sounds of grunting and gentle moans filled the air. Junior was sweaty and exhausted, but kept up a steady rhythm of thrusts between the legs of the red-haired goddess in who's embrace he found himself that night._

" _Faster!" She hissed. He could only obey._

 _She was nearing the edge, he could tell by how much more ragged her breathing was becoming, and much more vocal too. Soon he felt the tension building up within him that indicated he was close to his own release._

" _Tulip, I'm gonna…"_

" _No! Not inside…oh God, Jonathan!" She screamed the last part as she was driven into ecstasy._

" _Tulip!"_

'Ding'

The sound announcing the elevator's arrival at the requested floor pulled Junior out of the cursed memory he had been replaying in his mind's theater repeatedly since yesterday. After receiving Tulip's not-so-subtle threat, he had been forced to report that none of the mechanics knew anything about the thefts. Then, as if that weren't bad enough, he had had to go through the storage rooms and start on the new inventories and fudge most of the numbers, even though he knew who the thief was and could have terminated the issue in an instant. Unfortunately, doing so would also terminate his career, and his job. He had concluded that, even if it could be proven that what had occurred between himself and Tulip had been consensual, there was still the issue that he had bought alcohol for a minor (for which there were indeed witnesses). Besides, the fact that Junior had had relations with an employee would, in itself, be enough for Hunter to toss him out on the street, consensual or not. Yet he couldn't just abandon the assignment. His father had made it clear that it was a test of Junior's ability to run Cornerstore, and he had to deliver results of some kind, or face the boss's wrath anyway. It was the sort of conundrum that one prayed they never had to face, and he was right in the thick of it.

 _At least I get to go back to where things make sense today._ He though with an internal sigh of relief as he approached the delivery loading docks.

Inside, amid the hustle and bustle of men moving about, loading packages into trucks, or hopping inside them to head out on their routes, he soon spotted Douglas Hanson, the head of deliveries, chatting it up with a couple of the other drivers.

"Doug!" Junior called out as he approached the group with a smile.

The driver's fell silent and gave Junior looks that, if they could kill, would have beat him to a pulp, chopped him up into pieces, put them in a trash bag, and thrown it in the nearest river. Such venom caused the smile to evaporate from Junior's visage, and he stopped short.

"Hey guys, what's wrong?"

"Look who it is boys, the new manager." One of the driver's sneered.

"Yeah, he's actually decided to _grace_ us with his presence today."

"Careful, he might cut your pay or fire you if you piss him off."

Junior was hurt by this sudden outpour of hostility from men and women he had long considered his friends.

"I…I'm here to…run my route." He stuttered.

"Deciding to get down in the dirt with us little people?"

"Well, you don't have to worry about scuffing up your fancy suit. Bill's covering your shift today."

"What?"

"Yeah, so you may as well go back to sitting at your shiny new desk, _Mr._ Junior."

"Alright, that's enough!" Hanson barked, "All of you have shit you could be doing. Get to it!"

The pack of wolves dispersed, leaving Doug with Junior. He turned to his former employee with a look of genuine sympathy. "Sorry, Junior, but they're right. Bill's covering your shift. I thought they'd told you. Your dad ordered it himself, said you had better things to do."

Junior let out a sigh. "Yeah…I guess so." He was angry.

More than that, though, he was hurt. Delivering packages had been his job for the past thirteen years, and he had come to enjoy it thoroughly. He had thought that today he might finally be able to go back to those simpler times, if only for a moment, but no. If the icy reception he had received from his co-workers was any indication, those days were long gone. He wasn't Junior the delivery man anymore; he was Mr. Hunter Junior, future CEO of Cornerstore, and he hated it.

"Hey, for what it's worth…" Hanson's voice shook him out of his pity party, "…I'm gonna miss you, Junior; you were one of our best."

"Thanks, Doug." At least it wasn't all bad.

On the elevator ride back up to marketing, Junior took the opportunity of solitude to reflect. There was a part of him, no doubt, that wanted to just march into his father's office and tell him to go ahead and give the CEO position to Toady. That way Junior could go back to being a regular deliveryman. The more he thought about it, however, the more the idea churned his stomach. He was a man torn in two. A part of him yearned for the simple life of delivering packages to smiling, satisfied customers, but another part, a more ambitious part, wanted more. He suffered from the same debilitation that affected so many other boys: he wanted to impress his father. More than that, he wanted his approval. It was something that he had rarely, if ever, gotten as a boy. There had been long periods of time where Hunter had simply ignored him. Junior's mother had down all the raising, while his father seemed content that as long as he provided a roof and food for his family, his obligations were complete. It wasn't until after Mrs. Hunter had died that her husband placed his son in the family business. Junior had been ecstatic at the time. Finally, a chance to prove himself worthy of his father's affections. He had worked hard all those years, delivering package after package, and, finally, it was paying off. Hunter was prepared to hand him the keys to the kingdom, as it were. He had finally given his son his trust. Or, at least, he would once the company went public.

Upon reaching marketing, he started immediately for his new office. It wasn't big, in fact, it only consisted of a single old, black metal desk, a checkered pattern rolling chair that was so old, some of the stuffing was coming out of a hole in the back, an old Dell desktop that he was pretty sure was from 2007, and a landline phone that couldn't even make calls outside of the building. All of this was housed within a twenty-feet-by-twenty-feet box with dull white walls and a single window that didn't have blinds or a shade.

 _Thank God it's only temporary, I'd hate to have be stuck in here on a permanent basis._

The thought made him wonder about the office's previous occupant. How long had they been there? Had they been fired? Retired? Moved on to other things?

 _When I take, I'm going to renovate spaces like this. I wouldn't even keep my worst enemy in these conditions._

As he approached, Junior noticed something sitting on the desk that had been obstructed from his view by the computer monitor: a small, glass vase holding a single purple tulip with a note attached to it. He took the note and gently peeled it open as he sat down. It read:

" _Dear Mr. Junior,_

 _Hope your stocks keep on rising._

 _Tulip"_

Junior sighed deeply as he crumpled up the message. Here was the solution to his key problem, and he couldn't even present it to his father. Instead, he had spent all day yesterday faking inventory reports to try and make it look like the missing tools and parts were merely due to some colossal accounting error, and that was probably what he was going to spend all day today doing.

 _And now she's sending notes. I swear, she's just taunting me at this point._

Fortunately, he was distracted from further self-pity by the phone ringing. He grinned. Finally, here was a chance to try out something he'd practicing for the past three days. Before answering, he took a moment to cleared his throat loudly.

"Jonathan Hunter Junior, CEO of Cornerstore, speaking." He said into the phone in as deep and commanding a voice as he could muster, even puffing his chest out a little.

"The _future_ CEO of Cornerstore, don't get ahead of yourself." Hunter's own growling voice brought Junior crashing back to reality, as his chest collapsed with an audible "puh!"

"Yes, sir."

"Where are the rest of those inventories?"

"I'm going to finish them today, sir."

"See that you do, I need them by the end of today. Beckley is still waiting on those police records, but you should have them soon."

"Understood."

"And Junior…"

"Sir?"

"Good job on those inventories so far. I'm impressed."

A group of butterflies in Junior's stomach suddenly decided to make a mass migration, and he couldn't stop himself from smiling broadly.

"Thank you, sir."

The line ended, but Junior's good mood did not. He was walking on air as he gathered up some paper, a clipboard, and some pencils to finish what he had started.

" _I'm impressed."_ He kept playing the words over and over again in his head. How long had he waited to hear them? It felt like a lifetime. Now he was more determined than ever to do his best as he left his office with renewed energy and enthusiasm.

 _I'll make you proud of me yet, dad._

Down in mechanical, Junior was headed for storeroom two when he stopped before an old grey door with faded paint. There was an outline where a plaque likely explaining what the door held within had been located, but it's silhouette in the paint was all that remained, leaving its contents a mystery. He had noticed the door on his first visit, but had thought little of it. Now, his curiosity had grown to the point that he reached out a hand to try the handle, but found his efforts in vain. The door was locked tight. He his eye wandered until he noticed Patrick leaving the break room, and called out to him.

"Patrick, what's behind this door?"

"Huh? Oh, that was storage room three. It got closed down a while back after one of the air ducts fell and nearly hit someone. The big boss said he was gonna get things up to code so we could use it again, but that was a while ago and knowin' Hunter, the sky'll fall before…well…anyway, it hasn't been used in a while is the short end of it."

"I see, do you know if there are any parts or tools still in there?"

"No idea. I assume they took 'em all out when it was closed down, but to tell ya truth I haven't been in there in years."

"Do you know if anyone has a key?"

"Well, Tulip might, but I don't…"

"Patrick, what are you doing?" Their conversation was interrupted by the arrival of Charlie.

"Nothin', he was just askin' about the old storage room."

"Why? There's nothing in there anymore, not since that duct nearly took out Eddie."

"I know, that's what I told him."

"Well c'mon, we gotta get that new muffler installed by lunch or Tulip is gonna tear us a new one." Said Charlie, gesturing for Patrick to follow him as he headed back toward the garage, but not before giving Junior a dirty look that would have given Toady a run for his money.

 _Seems this new position isn't exactly winning me any new friends._

"What do you say we all stop off at that new joint after work? I hear the bartender makes a kickass Moscow Mule."

"I'm game, but I don't think Ed'll wanna go. The doc at the hospital said he's not gonna be able to taste anythin' for a while."

Charlie and Patrick's voices faded away as Junior reached storeroom two and went inside to resume his counting. When one first entered the room such a task seemed quite daunting. Rows upon rows of shelves stretched on, filled with pipes, wires, and even whole engine blocks, as far as the eye could see. He hadn't gotten half way through the previous day before calling it quits for the evening around eight PM. Nonetheless, he got back to the task gusto, as he recalled his father's praise once again. He hadn't gotten very far into the fuel injector units when the door to the storage room opened and Tulip entered. She had her usual smile on as she approached.

"Hey Junior, how's it going?" She inquired politely as she took one of the injectors off the shelf.

"It…I…where are you going with that?" Junior demanded with obvious irritation, having just finished counting all of the units on that particular shelf.

"Well, I had this idea for a hover car, and I've been thinking that if I add another fuel injector, I'll finally have enough power to…"

"Stop, just stop…" Junior held up his hand with a sigh, "…I probably don't need to hear this."

"Aaaw, c'mon, it's really interesting."

"To you maybe."

"It's not to you? Most people would kill to own a hover car. I know I would."

"You're making it out of stolen parts that I, technically, am responsible for now." Junior muttered as he erased his count of the fuel injectors and subtracted the one that Tulip was pilfering.

"God, you're always so uptight about business, do you ever think about anything else."

"Not when I'm at work, and I'm not 'uptight!' I take my job seriously, that's all."

"Oops…" Tulip gasped as she dropped the fuel injector.

Junior gasped and made to try and catch the valuable piece of machinery. He stopped, however, when he saw that Tulip still had her ring finger wrapped around one of the wires, preventing it from hitting the floor. He looked up to see a look of satisfaction on her face.

"See? You're totally stressed out. What you need is a break, some relaxation time. Have you ever been to that carnival downtown? I hear it's a blast, but I'd hate to go alone."

"No thanks, some of us have work to do." Junior said dismissively as he went back to counting.

Tulip pouted. "Oh c'mooon, there's more to life than work. You keep this up, you'll end up like your dad."

"If I turned out half the businessman my father is, I'd have all the time in the world to do whatever I wanted."

"And yet he spends all of his time in this building. I don't think I've ever heard of him taking a day off, even from the old guys who've been working here longer than I've been alive."

"So, what, I should just shirk any responsibilities I have and spend my time building contraptions out of stolen parts like you?"

"Hey, my work record is solid. There hasn't been a single truck they've put in front of me I haven't fixed, but I still know how to have a good time."

"You don't know what I do for a good time."

"I know that if you get a few drinks in you, you sure know how to have one." Tulip's voice gained a bit of huskiness as she wiggled her eyebrows suggestively.

"Yeah, and look where that got me: I'm being held hostage to the whim of a thieving teen who's not only distracting me, but is also making my job considerably harder by taking parts I've already counted!" Junior snapped, his patience wearing thin.

Tulip fell silent, deep in thought from the look on her face. Eventually, her face lit up and she grinned widely, missing only a giant lightbulb over her head to indicate she had had an idea. To Junior's surprise, she placed the fuel injector unit back on the shelf.

"I tell you what, how about another deal?" She suggested.

"Do I have a choice in this one?"

"Of course, you've always had a choice, but the consequences are yours to live with. You go with me to the carnival after I get off work today, and I won't take anymore parts."

The last bit piqued his interest. "Ever?"

"Well…so long as you're finishing your inventories."

Even that was a deal worth considering. It would mean he wouldn't have to fudge any more numbers, and it would make it easier to sell to Hunter that the missing parts were due to an accounting error if nothing else went missing for a while. Still, he wondered how far he could take this.

"How about this…" he said slowly, after some thought, "…you agree not to steal anything else, tools, parts, of even a cup of creamer from the breakroom, until I'm CEO, and I'll go with you to the carnival."

Now it was Tulip's turn to consider an offer. After a minute or so of silent contemplation, she nodded. "Deal!" She skipped over and smooched him on the cheek, despite his (admittedly weak) resistance.

"You're driving!" Tulip shouted over her shoulder as she left the storage room prancing like a fawn in springtime.

Junior watched her go with roll of his eyes, but couldn't help but smile. Her enthusiasm was hard to resist. A more rational part of his mind fretted, however.

 _What have you gotten yourself into? You're just feeding more fuel to her fire. If you're not careful, she'll end up running this company instead of you. Maybe, when I'm CEO, I can just fire her and be done with it. No, that's no good. She'd probably go to the news or something, and then this whole thing would be a real shit storm._

He shook his head. He had to focus if he was going to finish these inventories before his (he shuddered when the word 'date' popped into his head) appointment with Tulip.

* * *

 **I know this chapter was a bit shorter than previous ones, but I decided to split my original idea for a chapter in half so that there's a smoother continuity of scene flow between chapters. If it made this one a bit dull, I apologize, but I felt it necessary to give Junior's character a little more complexity by describing his motivations and fears of taking on his father's legacy. In other news, I've reached a milestone as a fan fiction writer and gotten my first flame review, hooray! To the 'guest' who posted said review, I would like to say thank you for the constructive criticism. I would also like to remind you that if you do not like the story, no one is forcing you to read it. For those of you who are still reading, I hope you are enjoying the story thus far. Please feel free to leave any comments or questions in a review, or, if your opinion is more in line with that of my heckler's, feel free to add to the flames. The First Amendment gives you as much freedom to express your opinion as it does me to ignore it. That being said, constructive criticism is always welcome, and if you feel the story or my writing could be improved, please don't hesitate to let me know. That's how I grow as a writer. Happy reading and writing everybody!**


	4. Getting to Know You

Chapter 4

Getting to Know You

Junior could finally see the far wall of the storage room after hours of mind-numbing counting and recounting. More than once he had lost his place and been forced to start over. It wasn't entirely his fault, though. The thought of going to the carnival with Tulip that evening had him quite distracted. After having such a copious amount of time to think on the decision, he had begun to question its wisdom more fervently. It was bad enough that a man like Alvirez had spotted him with Tulip at the hotel and come to certain assumptions (assumptions that weren't exactly incorrect either), but now he was going out to a public place here in the city. What if another Cornerstore employee saw them? Gossip was in as high a demand at the store as the packages it handled. No matter how many excuses he thought of, he could not bring himself to back out of the arrangement, though. A deal was a deal, and no one could ever accuse him of not honoring his word.

'BANG'

He jumped a foot in the air when the door to the storage room suddenly flung open. He didn't need to guess who was passing through it.

"Junior!? Junior!" Tulip's high pitched, excited voice echoed upon the walls, ringing like a church bell on a crisp, sunny Sunday morning.

 _Oh crap, what time is it?_

His question was answered for him when she found him. "It's five, and I just clocked out. You ready to go?"

"No." Said Junior dully as he continued his count.

The excited light in Tulip's eyes died. She frowned. "But you promised."

"If I don't finish this count, the boss is gonna get pissed."

"So? You're his kid. What's he gonna do, fire you?"

"No, he'll force me to eat my birth certificate, then fire me."

Surprisingly, Tulip's smile returned. "Did you just make a joke? Now there's the Junior I know."

"You say that like you actually know me at all. We spent one night together."

"Well, if you'd stop being such a stubborn ass, I might get to spend an evening getting to know you."

Junior stopped his count and gave her a stern look. "What's that supposed to mean? This isn't a date, Tulip. In fact, I'd call this a courtesy more than anything."

Tulip crossed her arms in a show of defiance. "Then show some courtesy and make good on your promise." Her words brought his internal debate roaring back to life.

 _You promised._

 _But dad will throw a conniption fit._

 _A deal is a deal._

 _You fail this test, and you'll never run Cornerstore._

 _A truly honest and good businessman stands by his word._

With a sigh of defeat, he nodded. "Alright, fine."

"EEEEE!" Tulip's happy squeal was followed by a tight bear hug that caused Junior to grunt in pain a little.

 _Boy, she's stronger than she looks."_

"C'mon, c'mon, let's go!" She was eagerly tugging him along to the door, dancing like a ballerina on the tips of her feet, a wide smile on her face and a twinkle in her eye.

They traveled back upstairs so Junior could put the remains of the inventory in his desk, lock up the office, and clock out before heading to the parking garage. Tulip couldn't stop chattering along the way.

"I can't wait, I've been wanting to go to this place for so long! I hear they have some of the best rides in the state; no, the whole country! I can't believe you've never been! Oh, I love thrill rides so much! I wish I could design them someday!"

"I'm getting a sense you like carnivals." Junior deadpanned as they reached his car.

Tulip laughed. "Am I being a little obvious about it?" Her face shifted into a look of surprise, however, when she saw his car. It was an old, 1997 Chevrolet Cavalier. The paint job had begun to fade, and the paint on the rear bumper was peeling off in large chunks.

"Wow, what a wreck, I thought your old man was loaded?"

"He is, but that doesn't mean he buys me everything. I got this puppy with my own money, thank you."

"Really? He didn't even help you a little bit?"

"Dad's always believed that I should be self-reliant. I pay for just about everything myself: car, clothes, my food. I'm totally self-sufficient." Junior couldn't help but end on a note of smugness.

"Uh huh…" Tulip was clearly only half-listening as she walked around the vehicle, giving it a throughout inspection. Finally, she shrugged. "Well, if it gets us to the carnival I wouldn't care if it was made of cardboard."

Junior shook his head as they got inside. "Nothing ever brings you down, does it?"

"I imagine if you were to hand me a large rock and drop me in water, that probably would do the trick."

The response managed to get her a laugh from him, which only encouraged her grin to grow wider. She was so cheerful, Junior couldn't imagine where she stored all that energy. His own face, which had begun to morph out the ghost of a smile, fell once more when he turned the key in the starter and was met by a few pitiful chugs of the engine. He tried again…and again…and again. Finally, with a cough, the engine roared to life.

"Uhhhh, can this old jalopy even get us there?" Tulip's concern had returned.

"Yeah, it just does this sometimes."

"Sounds like the starter is a few more turnovers from dying…" she cocked her head, listening to the engine intently, "…your filters need to be changed…", she took a sniff of the air, "…and I think I smell burning oil."

"Hey, she's got what counts." Said Junior defensively, patting the dash board affectionately.

A loud 'clang' drew Tulip's gaze out her window, where she saw a hubcap had fallen off the front-right wheel.

"Yeah, working airbags I hope." She muttered.

Against all odds, the car managed to rumble out of the garage, down the long, steep hill (a harsh, scraping sound from the breaks caused Tulip's look of nervousness to intensify as they descended), and out onto the main freeway. As they drove onward with no serious incident, she began to relax bit by bit. Soon, she was back to her enthusiastic yakking about a variety of subject ranging from repairs on Junior's car to the types of rides she would design. Junior was only half-listening, however. His mind kept wandering to his inventory, and how early he was going to have to wake up tomorrow to complete it before Hunter arrived.

"Hey…" Tulip reached over and gently slapped his cheek.

"What!?" Junior jumped a little, and looked over at her.

"Where are you right now?"

"Driving you to the carnival."

"You mean driving _us_ to the carnival, there's more than just me in this car, you know. Why not try talking to me?"

"Alright, what do you wanna talk about?"

"How about hobbies? What do you do for fun?"

Fun…what did he do for fun? He was surprised when his head drew a blank at the question. Surely there was something he did to occupy his time? The more he thought about it, however, the more he securitized his whole routine over the past few years. He would work all day delivering packages, even on Saturdays and Sundays. He rarely ever took a day off. When he wasn't working, he would read every book he could get his hands on about business and management, intent on gaining the skills necessary to become head of deliveries one day. Of course, the revelation that he was going to be elevated to a position more important than any he had ever dreamed of before had only spurred him to double his research efforts. When had been the last time he had gone out and had fun with his friends? When was the last time he'd even seen them? The realization suddenly hit that he had not spoken to any of his friends in quite some time. They had used to call him regularly, asking if he wanted to go see some new movie or check out a new hot spot.

 _Sorry guys, I'm just to exhausted._

 _No can do, I've got an early shift tomorrow._

 _I just bought this new book on managerial processes, and I really want to start it._

The more he searched his memory, the more was added to the myriad of excuses he'd been spouting over the past five years every time they had reached out. Tulip noticed his extended silence.

"When was the last time you even went to a carnival?" She inquired.

That question, at least, instantly invoked memories. He had been ten years old. His school had handed out flyers for a traveling carnival that would be passing through that weekend, and he had begged his mother to take him. Finally, after a lot of loud appeals, she gave in and agreed. It was just the two of them; Hunter, of course, had been too busy. They had spent the whole day together, Mother and son. It was one of his fondest memories of her.

"It's…been a long time." He admitted as they pulled into the parking lot.

"Ha, see? I'm finally getting you out of that place! Heck, you were probably born in Cornerstore."

"No I wasn't, I was born in a hospital like everyone else!"

"Yeah, St. Cubicle's Memorial Hospital for Frumpy Businessmen." Tulip laughed as she got out of the car, "C'mon, let's go have some fun for a change."

Junior rolled his eyes as he followed after her. Tulip was taking an equivalent of two of his own steps as they walked up to the ticket booth. She wasn't walking, she was bounding.

 _She's like a spring, for God's sake. Where does she find all of that energy?_

The guy at the ticket booth was some high schooler, whose acne dotted face was filled with a loathing for his current job that he didn't put much effort into concealing.

"Two adults please!" Tulip chirped at him.

"That'll be thirty dollars, please." The boy's monotone, downtrodden words caused her face to fall.

"Aw, c'mon man, you work at one of the best places in the world, how could you not be happy?"

"Have you tried working here? Thirty bucks please." The teen retorted.

Junior decided to intervene and pulled a couple of twenties out of his wallet. "Here."

The boy gave them their change and tickets, but Tulip continued to stare at him with disbelief, even after they had passed through the gate.

"How could he not love working for the carnival? I'd kill for a job here!" She exclaimed indignantly.

"You'd love a job _building_ things for the carnival. He just sells tickets. It's dull work." Junior explained with a shrug.

"Dull' is a relative term. Work is only as dull as we make it." Tulip said dismissively.

"More words of wisdom from the thief?"

"Hey, we're not here to talk about work. C'mon!" She grabbed his hand and led him toward the towering rides in the distance.

Getting to the rides, however, required them to go through the carnival's midway section, where a seemingly endless thoroughfare was lined with booths containing every carnival game imaginable: balloons and darts, ring toss, a target range, and even a dunk tank. The familiar smells of the carnival assaulted his nostrils: candy floss, popcorn, hot dogs, funnel cake.

It brought back more memories of the visit with his mother:

" _When's dad going to be here?"_

" _He can't, dear, he's very busy at work."_

" _He doesn't want to come?"_

" _Of course he does, he just can't. He's a very busy man."_

" _Oh…can I play the bottle game?"_

" _Of course."_

" _A winner! What will it be young man?"_

" _I want that one!"_

"I want that one, daddy!" A little girl's voice shattered the memory Junior had been running through. He noticed a child, no older than four or five years old, with the most brilliant pink hair and sky blue eyes he'd ever seen, standing in front of the bottle game booth with a frown on her face, clearly upset about something.

 _Is that hair color even natural?_ He wondered as he glanced at the man he presumed was the girl's father. His hair was chestnut brown in stark contrast to his daughter's.

"Sorry little lady, daddy didn't knock the bottles down. We didn't win anything."

"But I want it!" the little girl's lip was beginning to tremble and she looked about ready to burst into tears.

Junior glimpsed the plushy doll she was referring to. It was a large, white stork with a big beak and brown, beady eyes. It looked pretty goofy to him, but the girl must have really had her heart set on it, because she began to sniffle and sob.

"No, Diamond, stop it." Her father sternly reprimanded her for the tantrum.

The sight filled Junior with a new resolve, and he pulled his hand from Tulip's grip. "Hang on a minute."

He walked up to the booth and dropped a fiver on the table. "Three balls please."

The man handed him the flimsy little ping pong contrivances. Junior took aim at the central of the three towers of empty milk bottles resting on the pedestals a few feet away.

"You know there's a trick to this, right?" Tulip whispered as she stood beside him to watch on.

"Yeah?"

"Yeah, it's simple physics. Aim for the upper part of the bottle in the center of the bottom row. It'll take out the central support and then hit one of the side supports. Gravity'll do the rest."

Junior did as she suggested, taking aim and then tossing the ball, which collided with the spot just below the lip of the bottle. He smiled broadly as the trick worked like a charm, and the tower of glass crumbled to the floor. From there it was second verse, same as the first, and the remaining balls made short work of the other two towers.

"Wow, I haven't had someone knock 'em all down in a while. What'll you have, mister?"

"That one, please." Junior gestured toward the stuffed stork. No sooner was it in his hands, then Junior turned and held it out to the little girl who, along with her father, had still be standing nearby.

"Yaaaaay!" The girl, Diamond as her father had called her, took the stork with a happy cry.

"What do we say, Diamond?" Her father reminded her.

"Thank you!" the wide smile and pure joy in those blue eyes was enough to melt Junior heart a little, and a smile graced his own mouth as he watched her tightly hug the toy.

"You're welcome, little lady. Take care now."

"C'mon sweetie, let's go find your mom and brother." The father took the little girl by the hand and led her off, but not before giving Junior an appreciative nod. Junior watched them go, the smile still firmly ingrained in his lips.

It suddenly occurred to him that Tulip had been uncharacteristically silent. He turned to discover she was looking at him with eyes that held a mixture of respect and admiration with a twist of…something else.

"That was really sweet of you." She observed.

"Well, she seemed like she really wanted it."

Tulip smiled, but it was a different kind of smile, more gentle, almost sensual. She grabbed his arm and pulled him closer. "C'mon, let's go on some rides."

They walked through the thoroughfare, Tulip never letting go of Junior's arm as they went.

"So, what do you wanna ride first?" She asked.

"I…uhhh…I'm not a big rides kind of guy. Why don't you just get on a few and I'll wait." Junior shifted uncomfortably as he watched a high drop ride shoot down its pole with the occupants screaming in a mixture of terror and elation.

"No way, mister. You're going on them with me. Otherwise, why did I even bother to bring you?"

"I don't know, why did you?"

"Because I want to get to know you, silly."

"Why?"

"What?"

"I mean, why me? Surely there's someone more your age who…"

"Age is subjective."

"Whatever, point is, why pick this _particular_ thirty-two-year old?"

Tulip was silent, taking time to carefully consider her response. "There's something in you I like." She explained slowly, "You keep it buried for some reason, but every now and again it comes out, like that time at the bar in the hotel, or even just now with the girl and the stork."

"What, that I'm not heartless? What kind of person do you think I am?!" Junior was actually a little angered by the implication. He wasn't a terrible person. When he saw someone in distress, he helped. It was a natural human response, wasn't it?

"I didn't know. I didn't know what kind of person Jonathan Hunter Sr. might raise, but, from what I know of him, I didn't think they could be all that great. Now, I think I might have been wrong, and I want to find out."

"I'm not sure if I should be flattered or insulted."

Tulip got a laugh out of that. "Let's go on this one!"

He suddenly found himself being strapped into a giant ship that was built to resemble a Viking long boat. The ride started and the boat began tipping back and forth, going father each way until it gathered enough momentum to go completely upside down. Junior looked at the ground above him and immediately felt sick. Tulip, however, was having the time of her life, raising her hands in the air and screaming enthusiastically. Finally, the horrible experience came to an end, and Junior was hunched over trying to catch his breath and focusing on keeping his innards where they belonged. Before he'd even had a chance to fully recover, Tulip was dragging him onto the "Cyclone," a colossal, Y-shaped ride that spun on two axes, one at it's very base, and one on each arm, to produce terrific G-force. Junior felt as though every package in Cornerstore had been dropped on his chest, and struggle to breath. Somehow, Tulip was enjoying every minute of it. She even managed to get her legs into the air, while also throwing her hands up and squealing loudly over the rushing wind.

"Are you having fun yet?" She shouted.

"I think I'm gonna be sick!"

"Well then point your head the other way!"

He managed to hold it in, however. His head and stomach were still reeling when they exited the ride, so Tulip went to get food while he sat down on a bench to compose himself. He never ceased marveling at how Tulip could stomach all of it. Then again, the more he thought about it, the more he realized that the rides hadn't affected him as badly when he was a child. Maybe it was because she was so much younger.

 _You're turning into an old man, just like your old man._

"Want some funnel cake?" Tulip had returned carrying a plate-full of the powdered-sugar-coated, deep fried dough.

Junior took one look at the stuff and felt his stomach clench. That was it, the little fellow inside hit the 'evac' button.

"BLEEEEECCH!" He turned and vomited all over the ground.

Tulip took a step back in surprise, but then grinned. "Yeah, I think they over-powder it too." She joked.

"I'm glad you think this is funny." Junior groaned.

Tulip shook her head with a chuckle and placed the funnel cake down on the bench next to him. "Wait here."

She took off once more, leaving him staring at the confection food and still feeling quite ill. More than once he thought he was going to go again, but, in the end, his stomach seemed to settle for feeling highly perturbed. Eventually, Tulip returned with a can of ginger ale and some napkins for him to wipe his face.

"Here, drink this, it'll help settle your stomach."

He took the soda gratefully and sipped at it. "Engineer, physicist, and nurse; where does a girl with no college education learn all of this stuff?"

"If a girl is willing, college has nothing to do with how much she can learn. Besides, you'd be amazed the sort of stuff you pick up when others are depending on you." Tulip's bright expression fell, and for the briefest moment Junior got a glimpse of the terrible weight that she carried behind those shimmering eyes. It broke his heart to see such gloom in the eyes of one normally so cheerful, but it also intrigued him.

"Did you have siblings?" He inquired curiously.

"No…. well, not biological ones. The foster home I grew up in had a lot of kids, and most of the time the lady who ran it was too drunk to look after them, so us older kids mostly took care of the younger ones. I learned how to cook mac and cheese by the time I was eight, how to change a diaper when I was nine, and how to make a homemade finger splint when I was ten."

"Jesus…"

"What about you, any brothers or sisters?"

"No, just me."

"That must've been lonely."

Junior sighed. "Sometimes. It got worse after mom…well…anyway, dad was never the fathering type."

"What happened to your mom, if you don't mind me asking."

The question brought back a flood of pain that shot from his chest and spread throughout his entire digestive tract. The memories came flooding back.

" _Dad, where's mom?"_

" _Junior, stay back!"_

" _Where's mom!?"_

" _Son she…she…I'm so sorry, she's gone."_

"Look, I…I don't wanna talk about it." Junior stood up, his stomach was starting to feel a little bit better. "It's getting late, we should go."

"Aaaaw c'mon, one more ride, please?" Tulip pouted and batted her eyelashes, giving him what she must have thought were puppy dog eyes. He hated to admit it, but they were super effective.

He sighed. "OK, fine, but can't we choose something a little more…"

Junior didn't even get to finish his request before Tulip was off like a shot toward the large roller coaster at the far end of the park. With another sigh, this one holding far more exasperation, he followed.

"You know, you left your funnel cake back there." He reminded her.

"Screw the funnel cake!" Tulip exclaimed, practically vibrating with anticipation, "We're about to ride the 'Emerald Rocket.' I hear it's the biggest rollercoaster in the city."

"I'm pretty sure it's the only rollercoaster in the city."

"Whatever, it's gonna be kickass, c'mon." They got in a line that stretched through a maze of flimsy, temporary dividers that kept the waiting patrons in a semi-order.

As they got nearer and nearer, Tulip's excitement grew until she was bouncing on the ground as though it were made of rubber. At last their turn came, and they were even first in line of the group that was going aboard, so Tulip made sure they had the two seats in the front car. The pair clambered into the dark green painted ride and waited while the rest of the passengers entered and were secured. Tulip was rocking in her seat, straining against the safety bar as if she were a mental patient, desperately seeking freedom. Junior couldn't help but chuckle at the sight.

"You know, I'll admit, there's something cute about you when you're all hyped up." He said.

Tulip grinned back. "I think we should always enjoy life to the fullest. You should try it some time."

With the last car secured, the man operating the ride, a gruff fellow with a dirty beard and long hair tied back into a messy pony tail, pressed a button on the console and sent the ride rumbling onward. It started up a steep incline, ascending until it reached the top, where it paused briefly before cascading down the track on the other side, sending a rush of wind against Junior's ears. Tulip, of course, was absolutely loving it, and was back to her cheering, screaming self. Suddenly, the roller coaster hit a curve and Junior heard a loud rattling noise. It only lasted a few seconds, however, and he would have thought no more of it had he not turned to look at Tulip, who's smile was now completely gone. Replacing it was a look of concern.

"Did you hear that?" She shouted over the din of the other passengers screaming and the wind tearing past.

"Yeah, why, what's…"

"Shhhhh!" Tulip's shushing seemed impractical given the level of noise going on around them, but Junior fell silent anyway. For the rest of the rise neither uttered a word while Tulip cocked one ear to the side, listening intently. Eventually, the cars came back to their point of departure, and the passengers were allowed to disembark. Rather than exit, however, Tulip immediately approached the carnie working the ride.

"Excuse me, sir." She said, "But I think one of the connectors on the track is loose. I'd suggest closing the ride until it is repaired."

The gentlemen looked at Tulip with a mixture of annoyance and apathy. "Look sweetheart, we do regular checks on the rides every morning before we open. Trust me, everything was perfectly fine when we looked it over, so leave me alone and let me do my job, huh?"

"Yes, but the coupling on the corner there is loose, I heard it…"

"Hey, I'm not gonna tell you again, piss off before you piss me off."

"Hey, you're not gonna speak to her like that!" Junior stepped forward, but soon thought better of his threat when the man, who was by no means short on muscles, straightened up and looked Junior dead in the eye.

"What, you got something to say tough guy?"

Junior's confidence evaporated faster than morning dew in the summer time. "I…uhhh…I mean, that is…uhhh…we…we'll just be going."

He grabbed Tulip by the arm and, despite the most vehement protests on her part, dragged her away.

"What is wrong with you!" Tulip snapped, pulling free of his grip.

"What's wrong with me, what's wrong with you?" Junior retorted, "You have no business bothering that guy."

"The ride is not in a safe condition right now, we have to…oh God." Tulip's eyes suddenly went wide. She appeared to be looking at something behind Junior, who turned to see just what had caused the sudden wave of horror to cross her face.

The reason for her expletive was soon revealed. Junior swiftly spotted the bright pink hair of the little girl, Diamond, and the white stork plushy still in her arms. She was with her father, as well as a blonde-haired woman (presumably her mother) and a young boy with brown hair who was a bit older than Diamond.

"You're too small to ride the roller coaster, sweetie. We'll wait here while daddy and Nate go." The mother was saying to young Diamond.

"C'mon kiddo, let's get in line." The dad led his son toward the lineup for the ride.

Tulip moved to intercept the pair.

"Hi there!" the dad greeted them warmly upon recognizing Junior, "Having fun?"

"Sir, I'd suggest you and your son not go on this ride." Tulip said urgently, ignoring any formalities of small talk.

"What, why?" the father demanded.

"I have reason to believe that it's not safe."

"What are you talking about?"

"I think one of the couplers is loose."

"Do you work here?"

"No, but…"

"Are you a safety inspector or something?"

"No, I…I don't have any training like that, but…"

"Daaaad, I wanna go on the ride." The young boy, Nate, whined.

"Look, I appreciate your concern, but I'm sure the carnival would shut the ride down if they thought there was a problem. You have a good evening." The dad said before leading his son around the pair and into line.

The look on Tulip's face now shifted from nervous to absolutely panicked. She kept glancing between the father and his son, and his wife and daughter standing only a few feet away. After a few more glances, a fresh look of resolve came over her and she strode off toward a nearby tractor trailer that was parked in an isolated corner of the carnival ground.

"Tulip, wait, what are you doing?" Junior called as he chased after her.

"If the park doesn't fix that ride right now, all of those people could die!" Tulip hissed, "We have to do _something._ "

Junior was so stunned by her sudden aggressiveness that he didn't even start after her as she walked away toward the trailer. However, after looking back at the young Diamond and her mother, he followed her in haste.

 _She's right…we have to do something._

* * *

 **Hello everyone, I've been getting lots of feedback of late: some of it positive, some of it negative, and some mixed. Who would have thought this would be such a polarizing story? Still, I understand where some of you are coming from. It's difficult to see Junior as a human rather than a bird since the only image we have of him is the one the movie provides us. Still, this is one of the reasons I chose to write a story like this. It challenges me as a writer to be more creative in my development. It's the same reason I have focused more on Junior as a character than Tulip. The movie provides a lot of character development for Tulip, but not a lot of background or development for Junior. I'm taking advantage of this gap, and filling it in with my own creativity, rather than just borrowing everything from other writers. This, to me, is good fanfiction. It follows familiar characters and settings, but gives the author the chance to add their own special brand of plot and character development. While I know professional writers spurn fanfiction for a variety of reasons, I think it provides a good springboard for people to hone and develop their writing skills, and to put those skills before a literary community for criticism to help make you a better writer. For those of you who are still reading, I hope you're enjoying the story, and please do not hesitate to leave any comments or questions in the review section. I have already had one question that I tried to respond to in a swift fashion, and I promise to do the same for any others. Happy reading and writing!**


	5. You're Only as Strong as What You Carry

Chapter 5

You're Only as Strong as What You Carry

Junior was still unsure what Tulip was planning on doing as she approached the trailer's door, only to find that it was locked. She tugged desperately on the handle a few times before glancing around both sides of the trailer till she found what she was looking for: a single window on the left side that had been left propped open slightly.

"C'mon, gimmie a boost." She led him around to the window and gestured for him to get down on his knees.

"What?!"

"I can't get in there by myself."

"Why do you need to get in there at all?"

"It's probably where they keep their tools. I need something to secure that coupler."

"So, you're going to steal tools from the carnival now?"

"Junior, this is not the time for…" Tulip's angry admonishment was cut short by the sound of the roller coaster starting up. She watched, horror and anxiety etched on every part of her face, as the cars climbed the opening incline.

"Either help me, or get out of the way." She hissed, pushing him aside and attempting to scale the smooth metal up to the window herself. Her previous statement proved to be an astute assessment, however. She could not do it alone and kept sliding down.

A part of him admired her persistence, and that part was now gently nudging at his conscience.

 _If that roller coaster breaks, and you stood by and did nothing, how will you live with yourself? Look at her, at least she's trying._

With a heavy sigh, he moved forward. "Here…"

Tulip squeaked in surprise as he lifted her up on his shoulder and toward the window above. Her shoes digging into his shoulders caused Junior to flinch as she hoisted her, fortunately, skinny frame through the portal and inside.

"I'm in." She hissed.

"Really?" Junior muttered sardonically as he rubbed his sore shoulders.

"What was that?"

"Nothing."

Junior continued to glance around nervously as the sounds of Tulip rummaging around in the trailer filtered out through the window. He was praying one of the carnies didn't come around looking for something and overhear the ruckus. He risked a furtive glance at the roller coaster, which was coming to the end of its run without incident, providing him with a sigh of relief. His heart rate quickened, however, when he realized, as the previous riders were offloading, that Nathan and his father would be among the next group to board.

"Tulip, hurry!" he whispered.

"I'm trying, I can't find a…. ah! there it is!" After some more rustling sounds, and a loud thump, the door to the trailer opened and a triumphant Tulip emerged holding what looked to Junior like a cross between a monkey wrench and a tire iron.

"What's that?"

"No time…" Tulip ran past him toward the roller coaster. The cars were just about filled up and, sure enough, Nathan and his father were seated in the third car down from the front. The man operating the ride was going through and bringing the safety bars down securely across the passengers when the pair reached it. Tulip paused to study the man before glancing at the faulty coupler.

"Distract him."

"What?"

"You have to distract him so I can get under the tracks and tighten that coupler."

"How?"

"I don't know, insult him or something. He seems like a hot head, he'll go for the bait."

"You want me to fight him?"

"No, just keep focused on you and not me."

The man finished strapping everyone down and headed for the control panel. Tulip was growing desperate now, and she grabbed Junior by the shoulders and held him so that his eyes were locked on her piercing green ones.

"Junior, listen, if you don't do this, all of those people could die. Do you want that to happen?"

"Of course not!"

"Then man up, and get out there." She pushed him toward the carnie.

Junior approached the man slowly at first, trying to give himself as much time as possible to think of a way to catch the man's attention. He had a pretty good idea formed by the time he was within easy earshot of the man, and called out.

"Hey you, on the coaster." The man turned. "I didn't appreciate you talking to my…to my girlfriend like that." Junior hesitated at first, but eventually let the words leave his lips. It's not like they were sincere or anything, he was just trying to get this big lug's attention. Still, out of the corner of his eye, he thought he saw a brief flash of surprise and joy run across Tulip's face from where she crouched off to the side of the coaster exit.

"Oh yeah, and what are you gonna do about it?" The man growled.

"I…I demand you apologize or I'll…get really…really angry." Now that he had a chance to examine the man's muscular physique closely once again, Junior felt his mouth and well of courage run dry.

The man looked over Junior in amusement, before letting out a harsh, barking laugh of derision. Apparently, the future business executives skinny frame and limp arms were not all that intimidating to a three-hundred-pound gorilla like himself.

"Whatever man, piss off before you strain something trying to look tough." The carnie said contemptuously as he went back to his control panel.

Junior felt a twinge of panic hit his stomach like a freight train. It wasn't working, what was he going to do? He glanced at Tulip, who was giving him an exasperated look. She was waiting for him to do something, expecting him to do _something_. He glanced at the man once more.

"Hey, don't you turn away from me…you…you…" Junior struggled to think of a good insult.

"Fuck off!" the man called back, not even bothering to turn around."

"You kiss your sister with that mouth, turkey neck?!" The insult had not come from Junior, but Tulip, who had tried to yell it in as deep a voice as she could muster, no doubt to emulate Junior's.

The man's back went rigid before turning slowly to face his debaser. There was a murderous flair in his eyes as his lids narrowed and his lips pulled back in a snarl reminiscent of a wolf that Junior had seen once at the San Diego Zoo.

"What…the fuck…did you just say to me!?" the man's voice rose from a growl to a roar in three seconds flat as he climbed over the rail and advanced on Junior, who had a sudden desire to sink into the bowls of the earth and hide out like a mole rat. The man's muscles were even more terrifying up close.

"I…uhhh…uhhh…." Junior's eye darted back and forth between his soon-to-be murderer and Tulip, who gave him a thumbs-up before ducking under the tracks.

"Buddy, you're about to regret you ever drew air!" The carnie grabbed Junior by his shirt collar and pulled him so close that Junior had to close his eyes to keep from tearing up due to the foul stench of his breath.

His eyes shot open, however, when he felt a fist slam into his stomach.

"PUH!" the breath shout out of Junior like was a popped balloon while he stumbled backward and fell to the ground.

"Hey, c'mon, chill out man." Someone in the stunned crowd dared to speak up for the young business executive, but the carnie had no intention of stopping.

Before Junior had even managed to recollect his addled thoughts, let alone his breath, he found himself being yanked to his feet. His stomach screamed in protest as it struggled to recover from the sudden aggression it had just endured, but he was soon distracted from the pain there by a fresh wave caused by a fist connecting with the side of his nose. Junior returned, ass first, to the dirt once more. By now, the crowd had begun to take sides. Some people called for the man to leave him alone.

"Hey, I waited forever to ride this thing! C'mon!" Someone shouted from the roller coaster.

"Take it easy, man!" Came another protest from one of the spectators.

Still, others were urging the beating on.

"Bash his ass!"

"Rip him a new one!"

Junior felt something warm trickled across his lip, and reached up to feel a stream of blood flowing from his nose. It wasn't going to be his last injury judging from the way the carnie was advancing on him once more.

"C'mon man, you can take him!"

Junior wasn't sure where the encouragement had come from, but someone in the crowd was rooting for him and, somehow, it gave him a boost of confidence that commanded his legs to lift him from the ground and face his attacker. There was part of him that urged him to run, to give in to the urge of flight, but a strong voice within his very soul ordered him to stand his ground.

 _You're a Hunter, Hunters don't run._

The man wound up another blow, but this time his fist met only air as Junior stepped back swiftly, causing the man to stumble forward. He seemed surprised at first, but quickly zeroed back in on his target and tried again. Once more, Junior dodged the blow, and this time delivered one of his own to the mans chest.

"AAH!" the man doubled over in pain. A few people in the crowd cheered.

"What the hell's going on here!?" The gruff question spawned from a police officer who had come to investigate the commotion.

Junior attempted to explain himself, but the sudden loss of adrenaline meant that the pain from his previous pounding was now fully assaulting his nerves, and he could only grunt and wince from the pain.

"He attacked me!" The carnie pointed his finger accusingly at Junior.

"Huh?" was all Junior managed to get out as the officer grabbed him by the arm.

"Hang on, you hit him first!" One of the bystanders said indignantly, jabbing her own finger at the carnie. A few others spoke up in his defense.

"He started it!"

"That's right, said he had a "turkey neck!"

"But look at him, he's bleeding." Someone else took up Junior's case.

By now the cop was looking thoroughly agitated. "Enough!" He shouted, "Let's go!"

He led Junior away from the coaster, leaving behind a mixture of 'boos' and cheers. Junior didn't bother to struggle as he was led away. He took only a moment to glance back in time to see the carnie back at his panel and the coaster starting up the rise.

 _Oh God Tulip, I hope you had enough time…_

Fortunately, the policeman decided not to arrest Junior. Instead, he opted to merely throw him out the front gate with a stern "I never want to see you around here again, capiche?" Junior had wasted no time in running around the perimeter fence of the carnival until he found the rollercoaster. He stood still as statue, paralyzed by the fear, the uncertainty, as he watched the coaster makes its rounds. Every time it passed over the spot that Tulip had identified as faulty he flinched a little. What if Tulip had been unable to fix the problem? What if the next time the coaster passed over that spot, it would go flying toward the sun, it passengers screaming out their last breath as they plummeted into the unforgiving earth, the last chapters of their lives written in sheer terror? As the coaster traveled over the spot again, and again, and again Junior felt the tight coil that was his stomach loosen. Eventually, he felt confident that Tulip had managed to repair the coupler and headed back toward the parking lot.

 _She saved a lot of peoples' lives, you know. Maybe you should stop being so harsh on her._

His mind chastised his recent, hostile attitude toward him.

 _She threatened to lie that you raped her._

Still, another part was quick to remind of her deceitful actions: stealing, lying, seducing…

 _You were the one who invited her up to the room. Who came onto who?_

Junior shook his head as he reached his car. _She's a walking contradiction. Who would have thought that a thief would be so self-righteous?_

"Junior!" Tulip called out his name, and he turned to see her approaching with a gigantic smile on her face.

"Hey, there you are." Junior could not hide his relief, and even smiled a bit himself, having caught the infectious enthusiasm in her eyes.

"We did it." She said chipperly as she threw her arms around him, giving him a tight hug.

"Oof!" Junior grunted as her hug sent a fresh jolt of pain to his ribs.

"Oh, sorry!" She pulled away quickly, and her face fell as she saw the trail of tried blood from his nostril. "Wow, he really did a number on you didn't he?"

"You should have seen the other guy."

"I did, barely a scratch on him."

"Yeah." Junior's eyes fell to the ground. Tulip reached out and squeezed his shoulder.

"Thank you, Junior." She said sweetly.

"What about Nate and his father. Did they…?"

"They're fine. After I tightened down the coupler, I snuck back out and watched their ride. Everyone was fine. Nate looked like he really enjoyed himself…like a little boy should with his father."

There was a silence between them. Junior wasn't quite sure how to interpret it. Tulip had a sudden look of despondency across her features. To him it seemed a sin to have that face, normally so bright and beaming, filled with the dark clouds of morose. He reached out and gave her a hug, which she reciprocated. Upon pulling away, a new look had come over her, and she smiled.

"Can you give me a ride home?" she asked.

"Sure."

* * *

The drive to Tulip's was uneventful. They rode in silence for the most part, Tulip occasionally telling him to "turn left at the next light," or "go straight until the next light." Other than that, she spent the time staring out the window. Junior would have given anything to be able to read her thoughts. Clearly, she was thinking deeply about something. As they made their made further eastward, Junior watched the neighborhoods take on a distinctly lower income flare. Soon they were driving through streets lined with old buildings that clearly had not been cared for properly in a long time, covered in filth and graffiti.

"You live here?" Junior muttered.

"It's not so bad, really. I used to live in this place across from the projects. Sometimes I'd have a hard time falling asleep because of the drive-bys."

"Jesus…"

"Yeah, well, you can get used to living with anything I suppose."

"No one should be used to living like _this_."

"Some people don't have a choice, Junior."

Her words stuck with him, he saw people stumbling around in obvious states of inebriation. Surely, she had a choice, though. After all, she was head of the mechanical department.

"You're a manager, though. Can't you afford something…more polished?"

"Sure, but then I'd forget."

"What do you mean?"

"Guys like Chuck and Patrick…they live in places like this. If I leave, I'll forget what it's like for them, and they deserve a boss that understands. If your dad knew, maybe he'd pay them a better wage."

"Is their pay really that bad?"

"Pat's got a family that he and his wife can barely support. Their oldest son has to chip in a bit too."

Junior was surprised by the assertion. He had always made decent money as a delivery driver. Had his father merely been paying him more than everyone else? No, many of the other delivery drives made the same wage. Why were the mechanics getting payed so much less?

"Here we are." Tulip pointed toward a dilapidated brownstone that was coated in rust, mildew, and spray paint.

Junior pulled up and parked, staring at the firetrap that Tulip, apparently, called home.

"Wow…" he muttered.

"Oh, it's not so bad. It beats a cardboard box, and at least it has indoor plumbing…well, when it's working anyway." Tulip hopped out of the car and walked over to his window. "Why don't you come on up and I'll give you the tour."

"I don't know, Tulip. I…"

"C'mon…" Tulip opened his door before heading up the steps. "…You don't have to stay long."

She headed for the entrance without even bothering to look back. She seemed certain he would follow. Would he?

 _This is a bad idea…_

That tiny voice was urging him to shut the door, put the pedal to the metal, and leave it at that. Somehow, he knew that, if he accepted her offer, there was a Rubicon being crossed somewhere between them.

 _Just go, leave!_

Tulip reached the doorway and paused. Turning slowly, her bright blue eyes met Junior's and she smiled. It was a wordless invitation that spoke volumes. Junior found himself putting the car in park, killing the engine, and getting out, feeling as though he were doing so against his will. It was like being under a spell…at least, the thought of being so assuaged his common sense that was now screaming at him to get back in the car.

But something stronger than sense pulled him along as they entered the apartment block, climbed some old, creaky steps, and made their way down a hallway lined with peeling wallpaper, crumbling plaster, and mildew. Finally, they reached her door, which she proceeded to unlock and pass through into her realm. The apartment itself was pretty plain. There was a single room that acted as the living room with a much smaller area with a stove, refrigerator, and card table with a single chair that likely served as her dining space. There was only a single door on the far side of the living room from the front door, and Junior assumed it lead to the bedroom, but could not be sure, since it was closed. The living room had only two articles of furniture, an old, navy blue couch and a large, oak table that was cluttered with wires, gears, springs, a small welding torch, and various other odds, ends, and gizmos.

"Welcome to my humble abode." Tulip announced in a exaggeratedly grandiose manner as she gestured toward her meager lodgings.

"Wow, it's very…uhhh…rustic."

Tulip laughed. "Well, we can't all afford mansions."

"I don't live in a mansion!" Junior huffed defensively.

"No?"

"No, not since my dad kicked me out of the house when I turned eighteen. He said I had to find my own way. I rent an apartment uptown."

"Uptown, huh? Can't be that bad of a place if it's in that neighborhood."

"Well…I mean…I don't…" Junior's face was turning red as he watched some cockroaches scatter to their shelter beneath the stove as Tulip clicked on some lights. The truth was, she was right. He had never known squalor like this.

"Take a seat, I'm gonna clean off your face a bit." Tulip gestured toward the coach.

Her words brought his hand to his face where he was reminded that he still had a dried trail of blood coming from his nose.

"You don't have to."

"C'mon, I insist." She grabbed his hand and plopped him down in the coach where she left him to go find a wash cloth that was semi-clean.

While she was doing that, Junior took the time to study some of the parts on the table. A lot of them looked like the ones he had seen in the storage rooms, and he felt his stomach clench as he wondered how many of them were from Cornerstore.

 _At least she'll stop stealing now that you've gone to the carnival with her._

Oh yes, Junior fully intended to hold her to that deal.

"So, if your dad never helped you, how'd you afford a place uptown?" Tulip inquired from the kitchen.

"I guess I just saved up where I could. It's not like it was super expensive or anything."

Tulip returned with a dish rag in one hand, and a cup of warm water in the other. She sat down next to him and soaked a bit of the cloth in the water before dabbing away the blood on Junior's upper lip. "Neither is this place." She commented nonchalantly as she worked.

"I still can't believe you guys in mechanical make so little. I mean, everyone in delivery makes decent money."

"Yeah, that's about it. The upper management makes the bucks, and they pay the delivery drivers more because they're the ones that interact with the outside world the most. Your dad wants to give Cornerstore a good public image. Other than that, everyone else makes as little as Hunter can legally pay them."

A part of Junior's conscience snarled at the idea. How could such exploitation be accepted, or endured by the employees?

"Well, that's going to change." Junior muttered, more to himself, but Tulip heard him and grinned

"There it is." She observed, "It comes out every now and again."

"What does?"

"The part of you your dad wants to destroy: your generosity."

"What makes you think that?"

"Because he wants someone who can run that company in his own image, and it's not someone who actually gives a fuck about the employees." Tulip dunked the rag in the water a few times to wash out the blood gathered within before going to work on Junior's nose proper.

"You don't know my dad." Junior muttered, suddenly feeling rather defensive.

 _Why?_

 _Why not, he's your father after all._

"Maybe, but I know you, and knowing someone's kids can tell you a lot about them."

"Well, you seemed to have some pretty nice things to say about me." Junior noted testily.

"True, but all of those things you learned from your mom, not him."

"How do you know?"

"Two reasons, first, I may not know Hunter personally, but I know exactly how he treats people he thinks are beneath him…" By now she had finished mopping up the main mess and was finishing off the little bits.

Junior stared into her blue eyes, gleaming with a deep care as though he was one of her own family that she was tending.

"And the second?" He asked.

Tulip was silent for a moment, as though deeply contemplating how she would word her response. "You revere your mother more than him." She said at last.

"What?"

"When I asked you how she died, you didn't want to talk about it. That tells me she meant a lot to you. You have no problem with people trash-talking your dad."

"That's not true!"

"No? If someone were to walk up to you on the street and say that your father was a "mean, greedy, son-of-a-bitch," what would you do?"

"I mean, get angry, obviously. That's my father he's talking about."

"Alright, now what if someone were to say that your mother was a lying, cheating whore?"

Junior's eyes darkened with rage and his fists clenched. Tulip nodded slowly. "See?"

The simple word was enough to diffuse some of his anger as he realized, perhaps for the first time in a long while, that she had a point. His love for his mother and his love for his father was not equal. It had never been, in fact. Tulip did a few more blots with the rag before sitting back a bit and checking over her work. Junior couldn't help but get an odd sensation that she was admiring his face in the process.

"Well then, let's have a look at those ribs, shall we?" She said, standing up and beginning to tug at his shirt.

"Wait, what?" Junior gasped.

"C'mon, take your shirt off you big baby, it's nothing I haven't seen before." Tulip chastised him, bringing a tinge of blush to his cheeks.

Still, after some initial hesitation, he obediently lifted his arms and allowed her to remove the shirt, reveling a spectacular, purple bruise that was forming on the side of his ribcage.

"Oooh, looks like he got you good." Tulip muttered as she reached out to gently touch the spot, causing Junior to flinch and grit his teeth against the pain.

"Yeah..." he grunted.

"You know, Jonathan, there's something else I noticed about you." Tulip said in a voice that was taking on a far huskier tone than he would have liked.

"W…what's that?" Junior stuttered a bit.

"You're really brave."

"Not really."

"Yes, you are. You could have run away, but you didn't. You stayed and you faced the guy, even though he was twice your size."

"I couldn't just leave you alone."

"No…" Tulip's voice had grown lower, and now her hands had stopped feeling his injured ribs and were traveling up his bear chest, past his peck, and up to his neck. The sensation was pleasant, even arousing, and a sudden feeling of increased tension south of the border caused him to reach out and grab ahold of her hands, pulling them away.

"Tulip, wait…"

"You're brave, and you're sweet, Jonathan Hunter Junior." Tulip continued, ignoring his feeble protest as she pulled her hands free and bent down to his bruise.

It drew a hiss from Junior, but not because it was entirely unpleasant. Slowly, she moved northward, planting kisses on his bare chest skin along the way.

"Brave…and kind…and generous…" with each compliment she drew closer to his face until, at last, her lips were hovering only a few inches from his.

"…And downright sexy."

 _Stop her, it's a mistake, it'll just make things more complicated. Stop, STOP!_

Every brain bell in Junior's head screamed rationality at him, but it was to no avail. He was under her spell again, like a puppet on a string. He could not stop himself from learning forward and capturing those lips with his own. The held the kiss for a good minute, neither moving, just enjoying the sensation of their lips melding together. Eventually, after what felt like hours, Tulip pulled away and looked into his eyes with her own. He could see the desire, but also something else that had not been there that night in the hotel room. A genuine seed of romantic affection. For good or for worse, there was something between them now. Tulip leaned back in for another kiss, and this time it got messy. She pushed her tongue into his mouth and began a fierce turf war with his own. Almost instinctively, Junior wrapped his arms around her and pulled her closer so that their bodies were pressed up against each other, ignoring the pain from his ribs. The feeling of his bare chest against her shirt was enough to send fresh sparks through him, and the pressure from within his pants had grown far more pronounced…among other things. Tulip shifted little in his lap to get a better angle at his mouth, and her thigh brushed against his full mast. She most definitely felt it, because she pulled back suddenly and grinned a most seductive and, in Junior's opinion, sexy grin.

"You did a lot for me today, John." She whispered, leaning in to his ear, "why don't I do something for you."

There was still a chance. Some semblance of a protest remained in his increasingly euphoria fogged brain as she slid off of his land, knelt before him on the floor, and began to undo his buckle. His lips opened slightly, trying to let some objection cross the threshold, but it died in his throat as Tulip's deft hands slid his pants down to his knees. It was still there, somewhere in his brain, somewhere…some part that weekly called out to him to come to his sense as he felt her hot breath upon him. And then, as soon as they luscious lips wrapped around him, it died. Junior groaned and leaned back in the couch as Tulip worked her magic on it.

 _Christ, she's a magician._

And she was working his magic wand like a pro, using both her mouth and hand to bring new sensations that, even after years of girlfriends and hookups through high school and college, he never knew possible. Every now and again, Tulip would let out a small moan, only adding to is arousal. For the most part he stared up at the ceiling, enjoying the sensation. After a bit, however, he glanced down at the top of her red hair that was bouncing up and down as her head bobbed. Suddenly, she glanced up at him. Their eyes met. The sight was enough to send Junior over the edge. He groaned his release.

 _And she's a swallower._

She took a moment to hold him in her mouth, to make sure he'd given her everything he had. Then, she released him and sat back on the couch, cuddling up close to him and leaning her head against his still heaving chest.

"That…that was…wow…" Junior still couldn't even form a coherent sentence.

Tulip giggled. "I take it you liked it."

"Yeah…"

They sat in silence for a bit, Tulip seemingly content to listen to his heart beat return to normal while his breathing also slowed. At some point, Junior began to regain cognitive function, and his mind turned to the beautiful woman now holding him tightly in her arms. His inner businessman kicked in.

 _Tit for tat_

He thought as he gently wiggled free of her grasp. She looked confused, almost hurt by his interrupting of their cuddle.

"Junior, what…?" she began, but was cut off by a gasp as he kissed her pushed her onto her back and climbed on top of her.

"Don't you get a turn?" He asked, his own voice taking on a more lusty manner.

"No…I mean…you don't have to."

"But I want to."

They stared at one another in silence for a moment, Tulip reached out and placed a hand on his cheek tenderly. She smiled and nodded.

"Ok."

It didn't take them long to make short work of her shirt and bra in-between bouts of tonsil hockey. At first, he focused on her breasts, giving each as equal attention as he could muster, earning him moans and gasps from his lover. Soon, however, he grew tired of that, and decided to go for the main course. Her boots, pants, and underwear soon followed her shirt and bra to the floor. Now they were both naked, and Junior kissed his way down her stomach, abdomen and inner thigh before finding his true destination. He took a moment to glance up at Tulip, who nodded her approval, then, like a higher diver after having overcome one last flare of hesitation, took the plunge. Her moans rewarded and guided him as he went to work on her with as equal enthusiasm as she had him. Any final vestiges of argument in his mind were gone. It was just him and her, and he lost himself in her moans, her scent, and her taste.

Junior didn't go home that night.

* * *

 **Hello everyone, I know it's been a long time. I apologize, but school has started and I have way less time to write, but I refuse to dilute the quality of the writing in the interest of quantity. In the meantime, I would like to thank all of the reviewers and new readers who have come to find this story in the past months for your support and interest. For those of you who have been waiting for this update, and I thank you for your patience, and I have rewarded you with some nice fluff between our two lovers, and even a small lemon (sorry, again, no graphic description. This story isn't meant to be pure porn). On a final note, I'd like to address the internet troll who has been flaming my work. You will note, sir or madam, that I have deleted your second review since, unlike your first, it contained no actual criticism of literary nature. I would also like to point out that normal people who don't like something they have read tend not to go back to it. The fact that you have tells me your likely just an basement troll seeking to stir the pot for your own kicks. That being said, any further reviews by you will be deleted. I will leave the first review since, though it may not be one I agree with, the review contains opinions and arguments for those opinions that you are entitled to. To everyone else, happy reading and writing!  
**


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